The Sword and Spear
by TheFlagshipArkos
Summary: Jaune's realization of his feelings for Pyrrha shock him. Does he now have the courage to stand tall and achieve the best relationship he will ever have? That remains to be seen. A light Arkos fic. I do not own RWBY nor its characters.
1. sudden realisations

**Hello! This be my first fic so all criticisms and ideas are welcome. I don't quite know where I'm going to take this but I hope you'll join me for the ride. This will most likely be a little rough around the edges but ill try my damnedest to improve as I publish more chapters.**

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><p>Jaune Arc still couldn't quite believe that he had been accepted into Beacon. For as long as he could recall he had dreamt of being just like the heroes in the story books, of following in his father's footsteps and his grandfather's before that. And now he found himself the leader of the second best first year team in the whole academy, Team JNPR.<p>

Times had been rough at first for Jaune due to his lack of combat experience, and though it pained him to admit he knew he was hugely outclassed by near all of the other students but things had changed. Jaune had improved vastly with the help of his fellow team member and training partner Pyrrha. She had taken him under his wing, unlocked his aura and taught him to fight.

Jaune woke up late as he often did on a Saturday, at Beacon the students were given the weekend to do with it what they would and as was usual teams RWBY and JNPR planned to head out into Vale to shop for supplies or just to hang out. Jaune rolled over and looked about the room. Nora was gone as was to be expected, the Valkyrie was simply too hyperactive to stay in bed, Ren's bed was also empty for it was an unspoken rule that if Nora was awake, Ren had to be too.

Besides Jaune, the only other inhabitant of the room was Pyrrha whom was still sound asleep. She looked so peaceful that the idea of waking her seemed almost abhorrent to the knight. He watched her as she slept, taking in her appearance without the various troubles of her waking life and found himself thinking just how pretty she was.

Jaune was shocked at his revelation. He was embarrassed to think that he had been so wrapped up in his pursuit of Weiss that he had failed to see what was right in front of him. He thought back over all the events that had occurred since initiation. She had saved his life when his own 'landing strategy' had failed him, trained him instead of turning him in when he confessed his falsehood application to Beacon and above all else had been the best friend and teammate he could have asked for.

'_I've been searching for silver whilst walking on gold'_ the teenage knight groaned at the phrase his father had always said when he had been behaving spoilt as a kid.

He took another look at the champion and sighed.

'S_he's out of my league, she could have literally anyone in our year if she tried. Why would she be interested in a blockhead like me?_'

his fathers voice rang out in his head

'_Not with that attitude she wont be! Go out there and get her before its too late. Confidence is the key m'boy'_

The blonde staggered out of bed. He contemplated waking the Spartan but thought it wrong to disturb her when she had had so little rest lately so he showered changed and headed off to the canteen.

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><p>Jaune smiled as he saw he had hedged his bets and won, as he had expected he saw the rest of JNPR and all of team RWBY. Most had finished and were chattering amongst themselves, Nora was the exception to the rule and sat behind a monster pile of pancakes with syrup all round her mouth. She waved emphatically at his approach.<p>

"There you are! We had wondered when you would surface"

Ruby beamed at him and shuffled up to make space between herself and Nora.

Jaune retrieved some food and sat down heavily. Looking up he saw Ren shoot him a questioning glance

"I left her to sleep, she's been totally knackered lately with all the extra training sessions and the dance and all."

The knight dug into his food and became absorbed in the conversation that had kicked up about the teams' plans for the weekend. Ruby was in charge of coordinating it all and as always she was super excited.

"...And then I thought we could hit the mall cause there's this new weapon shop just opened up and I really really wanna see what they've got, I've heard they have this new gun oil made with dust that is just amazing!"

"Are weapons all you think about?" Weiss rolled her eyes at the young redhead, despite adoring Ruby as she might a younger sibling but her obsession with weapons to the near exclusion of all else did perplex her. The heiress failed to comprehend the unreachable appeal that instruments of death held for her.

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><p>It was not long after they had laid their plans that a Pyrrha strode into the canteen in her usual bronze attire.<p>

"Sleeping beauty awakens!" Jaune called out. The table laughed, he didn't have them often but his occasional bursts of confidence often had comedic affect. But what the others didn't know was that Jaune had meant it as more than an idle greeting.

"Sorry I am late, I overslept. Are they still serving food?"

"Yep!" Nora grinned as she returned with her third serving of pancakes. Once again the others burst into laughter.

Once they had all sated their hunger they shot off to the airport to catch the airship to Vale, it was only by the skin of their teeth that they caught it as they shot through the doors into a big, out of breath heap on the floor. They disentangled themselves and settled in for the ride, well, most of them did. Jaune stood poised over the onboard trash can ready for the inevitable onslaught of his motion sickness. It did not disappoint him.

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><p>The flight was not too long and soon they all stood among the hustle and bustle of the city. They all agreed to run their errands and gather what necessities they had to before meeting in the town square to hit the mall an hour later. The teams split into their usual groups with Ruby Following Yang and Weiss whom for all their bickering often shopped together. Ren went with Nora to ensure that she was supervised, and Blake went off alone to scour the book stores and libraries. This left Jaune and Pyrrha together, something which the young knight was glad for due to the fact that most of the times they were alone together they were sparring or training.<p>

"So where shall we head first? I mean I don't need anything really, I stocked up on all my necessities last week." the Spartan smiled warmly as she handed control of their hour to him. The blonde gave her a blank look, he didn't ever really need supplies given that he didn't use bullets. The only things he ever really needed were stationary and he got most of those from the stores at Beacon itself.

The knight's stomach answered for him with a loud, almost aggressive growl, Jaune started at the sound and blushed.

"Sorry, I guess motion sickness makes me hungry".

Pyrrha laughed her melodic laugh and took his hand as she led him off down a main street and into a small cafe tucked away down a small alley. An older man stood behind the counter and broke into a grin at seeing the champion enter.

"Pyrrha! So good to see you again" the old man beamed

"Hello Samuel, we'll take two slices of your finest chocolate cake please" Pyrrha spoke with a fondness Jaune hadn't heard her use for anyone outside of the teams RWBY and JNPR. He raised an eyebrow and they sat in one of the many booths.

"What? I love chocolate as much as anyone else...well save for maybe Nora and Ruby." their conversation was interrupted as Samuel brought them two slabs of what looked to be the richest looking cake Jaune had ever seen. Pyrrha paid him, this made Jaune frown. His father had always insisted that he pay for his own food and for that of any female counterparts should he have any but it was too late now, he would have to remember to pay her back later.

The champion sliced off a decent chunk and put it in her mouth. As she did her whole face seemed to light up. She opened her eyes to find Jaune staring directly at her and shot him a puzzled look. Realising he had been caught out he dove into his cake to hide his reddening cheeks. It was truly delicious.

"How did you find this place?" Jaune asked as he shovelled another mouthful of cake.

The champion pause a moment in thought. " Well when I got here my reputation had preceded me. I was just looking for a place that I could be alone with my thoughts. A place away from would be suitors and fanatical fans. I just stumbled across this place and fell in love with the place"

Her response shocked Jaune. He had never considered the problems her fame might have brought her. Since she had formed their partnership and been enrolled into JNPR she hadn't really been bothered by fans or suitors. To learn how things had been before shocked him.

The two sat in their booth chatting and eating all the cake they could until their hour was up. The two made a move to leave but the redhead stopped him in his tracks, she looked as if she was trying not to burst into fits of laughter. The knight shot her a questioning glance.

"Um Jaune... you have uh...a little chocolate around your mouth" she giggled.

The knight took his napkin and wiped his face, when he finished and surveyed his napkin he realised she had understated it. The once white napkin was _caked _in the rich cake's icing. He blushed the same shade as the Spartan's hair.

"I-I knew that" he tried to save face "I was just saving it for later"

This finally broke Pyrrha she had a fit of merriment that Jaune found himself drawn into. The two remained in their little cafe laughing until they had tears streaming down their faces and were gasping for breath. Once they had regained control of themselves they found that they were stood in comfortable silence looking straight into one another's eyes, this in turn made them both blush beet red.

"W-we should uh...get going, we don't wanna be late"

Pyrrha nodded and turned to the door to hide the look of disappointment on her face. Internally a battle raged. She knew that was her chance to make her move and that that chance was now gone. she sighed and left their hidden coffee shop.

The two finally made their way to the town square where they found RWBY and NR waiting. Most of them were already laden with bags containing their purchases save for Ruby who had been saving her Lien for her new weapons shop.

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><p>It was only on the return airship to Beacon that Pyrrha realised how tired she was. A part of her wanted to stay awake so that she could support Jaune through his inevitable airsickness attack, but she was simply too tired. Deciding that Jaune would be able to cope she settled into her seat and was soon fast asleep.<p>

The next thing she knew was the feeling of strong arms around her and the feeling of movement. Perplexed, she opened her eyes to see Jaune's face smiling back at her. She was in his arms as he carried her through the halls of Beacon. Her feelings on her situation were twofold. On the one hand she felt a rush at being in his arms and she had to admit his carrying her to their room was really cute. But on the other she was guilty that he had had to carry her all the way from the airport.

"You fell asleep and we didn't want to wake you" the knight explained in a hushed voice.

The champion nodded and slowly lowered her face to avoid showing how red she was fast becoming this in turn only made Jaune chuckle. She had accidentally fallen into one of her dream scenarios and was enjoying every moment of it.

'_It's a shame that he insists on chasing Weiss.' _she sighed. Nothing got to her more than watching the ice queen shoot down Jaune's advances, but a small part of her enjoyed knowing that he was still up for Spartan comfortable in her partner's arms began to drift back to sleep. The last thing she felt before she went was the knight gently laying her on her bed and covering her with a blanket.

'_Awh, hes tucking me in_' she thought before falling into the land of dreams

"Goodnight Pyrrha" he whispered.

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><p><strong>Thanks for reading. I wasn't quite sure how to end this one so I'm sorry if it seemed a tad abrupt. Like I say ill try and improve as I release more chapters, I have no idea how long this will go on for but it's gonna be fun finding out.<strong>


	2. A new dawn

**Hello again! The first chapter did an awful lot better than I had expected it to, so I would like to thank all of you that followed, favoured and reviewed. I have tried to account for your comments and alter the way I wrote Pyrrha and Nora. I really didn't know quite what to do here and spent a lot of time staring at a blank page but after some thought I have a good idea where I want to take this from here. Fun times ahead, I hope :S**

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><p>"Good morning!"<p>

Pyrrha awoke dazed and confused to find Nora's grinning face hovering over her as she sung her greeting. The Champion was far from pleased at her somewhat abrupt awakening but couldn't help but smile. Both as Nora's good cheer and contagious smile as well as her recollection of the previous night's events. She simply couldn't believe he had carried her back and tucked her in. For a brief moment she considered that it might just have been a dream, granted it wasn't the first time that the Blonde knight had been the subject of her dreams.

The redhead showered and dressed quickly. She returned to the dorm in the hopes of speaking with Jaune, but to her surprise he was nowhere to be found. His bed was made and his blue rabbit onesie was folded neatly by his pillow. That was odd. On her bedside table her scroll buzzed. The message was from Jaune.

'_Come to the roof.'_

Pyrrha had to admit it she was curious, it was unlike Jaune to leave so early in the morning without good reason. She left Nora and Ren on their way to the canteen with a smile and a promise that she would catch them up later with their leader in tow. As she headed up the flights of stairs towards the door to the roof she began to grow nervous.

'_Why was he up so early? Maybe this is about last night_'

Opening the door she saw the knight. He was sat on the edge with his legs dangling over gazing out at the Emerald Tower. He turned to her before and frantically waved her over.

"Hurry! You have gotta see this"

The Spartan made her way over and sat next to him.

"You're just in time, look!"

He pointed towards the tower. She was just about to say that she didn't understand when the sun's rays rose just high enough to hit the colossal gems within Ozpin's tower blazing through them and bathing the rooftop in a an iridescent green light. Pyrrha put a hand over her mouth in a soundless gasp. It was not every day that she saw something to take her breath away but this was one of those moments

"Now you have _got _to admit, that was a sight well worth the seeing"

The blonde said smugly, a smile playing about his lips. The Champion's only response was to nod. Spurred on by her reaction Jaune decided to make his move.

"Pyrrha, I've got something I wanna ask you."

"Jaune, you know you can ask me anything" she smiled warmly, her eyes not leaving the spectacle in front of them.

"W-well, I was uh...I was wondering if maybe you might wanna hang out,sometime y'know...just us... It's OK if you don't, I mean ill understand but I thought it might be fun cause we don't really ever just hang out 'cause we're normally training and I..."

"Jaune..." The Spartan interrupted him smiling and shooting him a knowing look "Are you asking me on a date?"

Jaune shot past blushing and went straight to near meltdown phase.

"W-would i-it be bad if I said yes?" he stammered. His face growing more red as time went on. He was pulled out of his state of embarrassment as she took both his hands in hers and turned him towards her.

"I would _love_ to Jaune." she giggled.

"W-well that's great! Shall we say eight at the campus statue?"

"Eight sounds good" her viridian eyes shone with a mixture of joy and excitement. "Now come on, we should eat before the cafeteria closes."

Still holding his hands the Huntress-to-be pulled him to his feet and led him off to the mess hall.

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><p>Team RWBY and Nora had squealed with excitement when she had told them of her date with the Knight. It was no secret amongst them that the Champion harboured a certain affection for the Hunter in training, but it had always seemed that he had been too busy chasing after Weiss for him to notice her, so when she had told them that Jaune had asked her on a date and indeed the fact that she hadn't ever been on a serious date before the levels of excitement sky-rocketed.<p>

The girls all flew into a frenzy arguing over the correct amounts of make-up and what kind of outfit that Pyrrha would wear. The amount of fuss that was being made of her overwhelmed the Spartan, this was going to be a day of firsts. It was quickly decided that an impromptu shopping trip was necessary, a decision in which Pyrrha had had very little say. Still if there was a chance of improving her date with Jaune, she was willing to go along with it.

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><p>Jaune sat in team JNPR's dorm room. After breakfast Pyrrha and Nora had gone with team RWBY to prepare for that evening. Jaune was shattered after all that had happened and the clock had yet to strike noon. He had no idea where he was going to take her for their date and he had no idea what he was going to wear. Panic was beginning to set in.<p>

"What about a restaurant? That's romantic right?" the knight offered pleadingly.

"Jaune. Don't over-think it. I'm sure that you will both find it enjoyable regardless of where you decide to take her." It was at times like this that Jaune truly valued Ren. His level headed attitude always served as an effective way of calming the leader down.

"You're right." the knight sighed calming slightly "I think I know just the thing to do"

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><p>Pyrrha was growing restless. Their shopping trip had been fun to begin with but after looking through what she was sure was every clothes shop in vale she was losing patience. They had spent the last couple of hours trying on all manner of dresses and gowns and yet they still had to find one that they all agreed was right for the occasion.<p>

Just as the redhead was bordering on a total loss of hope they entered a small shop away from the main precinct.

'_Frock, stock and Two Smoking Heels'_

They all hurried inside sending the door beeper into overload. The lady at the counter stared in disbelief. It was the largest number of customers she had had in a long while.

RWBY and NP wandered about the small boutique gushing over some of the more classy numbers. Pyrrha and Ruby hit up the red items, Weiss the white ones, Blake and Yang the black and white whilst Nora rushed about loving everything in a hyperactive frenzy.

Before long the Champion was stuffed into a changing room with an arm stacked high with gowns and dresses to try on. Each and every time she stepped out it was met with a general consensus that it wasn't quite right. Finally she reached the last item in the pile. It was her favourite that had been picked due to the fact it was her colour. Red.

Nervously she stepped out from behind the curtain and heard the collected gasp of the five girls. Weiss nodded to the store manager

"We'll take it"

"It's _perfect!" _Nora squealed in excitement, jumping up and down clapping as she went.

"If Vomit-boy doesn't take the bait on this one he's either blind, stupid or maybe both" Yang spoke with a wink making Pyrrha blush the same shade as the dress she wore.

"You don't think it's too much do you?" she asked coyly.

"Nonsense! I'm sure he will love it!"

Weiss insisted on paying for the dress leading to a free-for-all as the other members of team RWBY sought to have their favourites paid for. Weiss was successful at fending them off until Ruby broke her resolve with her infamous puppy-dog eyes.

"Ugh fine! But only _one _item each!" Her response elicited laughter from Pyrrha and Nora who had been stood back watching the affair next to the frightened store manager.

As they left the store Pyrrha tried to pay Weiss back her Lien for the dress but the ice queen would have none of it.

"If it helps put you and Jaune together and rescues me from his advances, then it is money well spent." she spoke matter of factly but internally she was happy to be able to help the Champion.

'_Watch out Jaune, here I come_' Pyrrha thought, a mischievous smile on her lips

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><p>That evening as the time for his date drew near Jaune finally finished his preparations. It had taken all day to track down the relevant people to complete his arrangements and was finally confident that everything was ready. Besides him sat a wicker basket which he had packed full of specially prepared Mistral cuisine (he had had to practically beg the kitchen staff for their help).<p>

The knight checked his scroll, seven-thirty. He gathered his 'date clothes' and hit the showers. five minutes later he returned fussing over his shirt collar. He had gone for simplicity with his outfit. A black shirt with the sleeves rolled up just beyond the elbow, and black trousers. He didn't want to overstate the evening and make his partner uncomfortable after all.

Jaune gathered his basket and left the dorm and headed for the statue. He would rather head there, arrive early and burn time doing so than stew it out in the dorm and over-think matters.

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><p>Across the hall from the JNPR dorm, Pyrrha was finishing her final preparations. She was sat on Weiss' bed and her nerves were beginning to show. She laughed internally, facing off against death-stalkers and Ursa she would hardly flinch and yet now before a simple date she found her hands trembling uncontrollably.<p>

Checking her scroll she saw that it read seven-fifty five. The huntress-to-be stood, gathered her thoughts and stepped out into the corridor. She ran down the halls for fear of being late. Her fears were unjustified however as she arrived to find him sat awkwardly at the base of the statue a small basket next to him.

She took a deep breath to steel herself and slowly walked towards him. The knight was torn from his thoughts by the sound of footsteps. Looking up he caught his first glimpse of his date and his jaw dropped. He was _not_ disappointed.

She was wearing an elegant strapless dress with bronze trim. It hugged her figure perfectly from her shoulders to her waist making Jaune blush. It was split on her left side exposing her smooth calves. She had let her hair out of its usual ponytail so that it cascaded over her shoulders like a river of magma. She had forgone make-up save for her signature green eye-shadow which further accentuated her eyes so that they looked as flawless emeralds to his eyes. She was the epitome of beauty.

Jaune grew bashful as she approached. His own attire was poor in comparison to that of his date. By underplaying the formality he had hoped to put her at ease, yet now he feared that it would seem like he wasn't trying.

"J-I-uh... wow"

the knight stammered as his face flushed red, composing himself he tried again.

"You look amazing!"

The Champion giggled.

"You scrub up pretty well yourself"

Jaune retrieved his basket and took her hand. He led her away from the statue and towards the gardens. With the food on one arm and the girl whom he was sure was the most beautiful on campus on the other he led the way to one of the academy's most secluded lawns. There Pyrrha saw a lone willow tree, and below it lay a blanket bathed in candle light courtesy of a little detour. Her eyes widened at the sight.

"I'm know it's not a fancy restaurant, but I hope you like it"

The Redhead hugged him tightly. Her eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"Jaune, it's perfect."

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><p><strong>So there you have it. I know there will be some of you whom may feel like I moved things along too quickly and for that I apologize. I shall be levelling it out from here. Fun fact, a lot of this was written under the influence of the lord of the rings soundtrack. As always leave comments, reviews and suggestions and I'll take them all into consideration. The next chapter will hopefully be all the romance my brain can muster.<strong>


	3. A Night to Remember

**Hey guys, just a quick note, we've reached over 1,000 views, 44 follows and 25 favorites. that is phenomenal and i wanna thank each and everyone of you for reading and sticking with it. and so without further ado i present: the date. **

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><p>Jaune smiled his signature smile as he led his date over towards their destination. He was glad that his day of rushing about had paid off. His reward was the sheer joy which his partner was exuding. He had never seen her like this, she seemed to be positively glowing.<p>

'_So far so good_'

His initial apprehension was beginning to fade away. He opened the basket and set out two plates and cutlery. The Champion's eyes followed him as he began to unpack the various foods he had brought. There were foods of all kinds, pastries were laid out next to complex looking chicken dishes. There were finger foods, main courses and deserts that could satisfy any desire. Ordinarily Pyrrha would avoid deserts and eat as healthily as was in keeping with her strict training schedule, but this was a special occasion and one dessert couldn't possibly hurt.

'_Maybe ill just have a taste of each_' the voice in her head spoke but she doubted her resolve when faced with the foods before her. It was clear to her just how much effort that her knight had gone to.

"I-I thought you might like some f-food from Mistral. To..uh... remind you of home." the knight stuttered.

Pyrrha's smile grew wider than Jaune had thought possible. She looked him deep in the eyes as though she sought to gaze into his very soul. Never before had she experienced what she was currently. No-one had ever gone to as much effort for her as Jaune was now just for her. Before coming to Beacon she had been pursued by many suitors who sought to make use of her reputation and celebrity status. Never before had she had someone who loved her for who she was. But Jaune was different, he approached her with a refreshingly genuine nature. The blonde liked her for _who_ not _what_ she was.

Tears began to grow in the corners of her eyes as she looked at her partner and she knew. She knew she loved him this was no small infatuation, her whole heart was his should he but ask.

The blonde gave Pyrrha a look of concern as he saw the tears form in her eyes and roll down her cheeks. He dropped what he was holding and drew her in to his arms, she tucked her face into his shoulder as all her pent up emotion flew out. She felt ridiculous, she was the happiest that she had ever been and yet here she was weeping into his arms. Five minutes passed before she regained control of her unruly emotions and the knight spoke.

"I-is everything OK Pyrrha?" he asked, worry flowing through his voice. The Huntress looked up at him her eyes slightly puffy and nodded slightly.

"It's nothing" She spoke so softly that Jaune had trouble hearing her. The knight didn't press her any further, he just sat holding her tightly until the crying stopped and Pyrrha began to pull away. She wiped her eyes and giggled.

"We should probably eat something, I'm _famished."_

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><p>Pyrrha hadn't deceived him. Mistral food was amazing!. Every mouthful was a new plane of heaven for him to explore it ranged in flavour from sharp fruit based bites to the spiced and savoury meats. And his best of friends was there to guide him along, she often had him close his eyes as she placed small morsels in his mouth for his judgement. He made a mental note to fervently thank Beacon's cooks again. To top it off Pyrrha was in fine spirits, her tears left far behind.<p>

As the night wore on they worked their way through their food until Jaune frowned to see there was no more. The knight sighed and lay back gazing up into the sky. She soon joined him resting her head upon his chest. She sighed contentedly, the night had been all she ever hoped and dreamed of. The stars were out in force ranging from small and dull to big and brilliant. The night was clear and provided them with clear scope of all the constellations from the Ursas both major and minor to the Great Hunter: Noiro, a famed hunter of myth that killed the great death-stalker with just one stroke of his mighty axe.

Jaune spoke in a hushed voice as he described the tales of the constellations and how they all tied in together. Pyrrha had never taken the time between her cereal-box-modelling and her rigorous training regimen to relax and enjoy the finer things in life, like the stars, and she listened intently. The stories were fantastic, full of bravery and monsters that made her want to nuzzle into him for safety. The two watched in awe as a shooting star streaked its way across the sky as though it was a salute to them alone.

"Quick make a wish!"

Pyrrha thought fast, she was on a date with the man she loved, she struggled to think of anything more she could possibly desire when it came to her. She closed her eyes and wished with all her heart. The knight sat up and looked her deep in the eyes ;

"S-so what did you wish for?"

Apprehension gripped her but her adrenaline was pumping now. Sensing that the moment was at hand, she cupped Jaune's cheeks and pulled him closer. The atmosphere became electric as she leant in and kissed him. She felt a feeling of exhilaration course through her body as their lips touched. They felt soft and warm to her, it was just as she had imagined

The knight was shocked to say the least, this was more than he had dared hope for. He overcame his initial surprise and kissed back, doing his best to deepen the kiss before they split apart gasping for breath. The knight and Spartan both blushed as they tried to regain their composure and the confidence to look the other in the eye.

"Wow..." She whispered just loud enough for him to hear. Jaune nodded

"Wow" he agreed.

He stood, took her hands in his and still wearing his mile wide smile he pulled her into a tight embrace. There they stood, under the light of a million stars but to the two of them, nothing existed save for each other.

It took a while for the Champion's to process what had happened. Not only was she on a date with the most special person in her life, but she had just successfully shared her first kiss with that person. Was it even happening at all or was it some daydream she would be dragged out of? She lay her head on his shoulder and found it the most comfortable place on earth at that moment, like she belonged there. She gave a deep sigh of relief, her very dreams were coming true.

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><p>It was late, later than Jaune was used to staying up til. The moon was half way through its journey across the sky. The only sounds were that of the wind in the grass and eaves of the old willow tree. In the branches sat an old owl, he had lived in that very willow for decades standing vigil over his domain, and had never seen a sight like that of the two teenagers that lay at the foot of his tree. The two lovers were in a world of their own.<p>

Jaune lay gazing out into the cosmos pondering the events that had led him there whilst a certain Huntress-in-training slept in his arms. He had been listening to the constant rhythm of her breathing, it relaxed and entrancing him serving to make him smile to such a degree that the muscles in his face burned.

If anyone had said when he first came to Beacon, that he would be lying in the gardens with one of the top students _and_ the 'Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes' mascot asleep in his arms, he'd have laughed in their face. Things like that had never happened to Jaune, and yet happened they had and by dust he was glad for it.

He checked his scroll to see that it was 3 am.

'Time to go'

Solemnly, the knight slid out from under Pyrrha, she stirred slightly but did not wake. As silently as he could he packed the plates and blanket into the basket and extinguished the candles. Leaving the wicker container at the base of the willow, he'd return it later, he wrapped an arm around Pyrrha's shoulders and around her legs so that he was carrying her bridal style. She reacted only by snuggling closer to him as he carried her off to the dorms.

He had arrived within ten minutes and, through an amazing display of dexterity, unlocked and opened the door. He carried the Champion to her bed on the far side of the room from his own. With all the care and delicacy he had he laid her out and covered her with her duvet. The knight tenderly brushed away the few strands of hair which obscured her face leant in and lightly kissed her upon her forehead.

Inside his head the knight was leaping cartwheels. Where did this leave him? Was Pyrrha his girlfriend now? He'd kissed a girl! And he _had_ liked it! There was no way he would be sleeping tonight... one thought remained in his head, bouncing around and disrupting his thoughts.

'What next?'

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><p><strong>There it was. This chapter is a tad shorter than normal but i hope you like it all the same. It was a new experience to try and write romance and i'm quite pleased with how it went. And now onward!<strong>


	4. There's got to be a morning after

**Hello once again! here we are again with a new chapter. It was good fun writing this one so i do hope you all enjoy it.**

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><p>Jaune was torn from sleep after what only seemed like minutes by his scroll's alarm. He groaned already missing the weekend. Around him the rest of JNPR struggled out of their beds. Of the four of them only Nora seemed truly unperturbed by the early start. Ren left for the showers with Nora talking his ear off as was customary. As Jaune went to follow he was pulled back by his partner. She pulled him into a tight hug and lightly kissed his cheek.<p>

"Jaune, I wanted to thank you." she spoke with a blush.

"What for?" Jaune replied, a quizzical look upon his face.

"For last night, I know you must've gone to a lot of effort and I wanted you to know I'm truly grateful."

"I-it was nothing, really".

The knight scratched the back of his head sheepishly his face fully red.

"Well, the next date is on me, I can't have my boyfriend organising them all." she headed for the door before pausing and shooting him a mischievous grin.

"Oh, and I promise not to fall asleep next time."

The blonde stood dumbfounded.

'_Boyfriend?_' he thought '_so we're actually, properly together!'_

* * *

><p>Jaune knew that breakfast would be the first major hurdle. It was not so difficult to actually tell their friends; for the most part he knew they would be accepting, it was Yang whom he was concerned about. The brawler was infamous for her ridicule of the group with little to no remorse.<p>

He reached the canteen to find all of RWBY and the rest of his own team at their usual table. The knight yawned as he grabbed his tray, some food and returned to the table. He took his usual place next to Pyrrha but the moment he found his seat she leant over wrapped herself around his arms and gave him a light kiss on his cheek leaving Jaune a new shade of red.

"So lady-killer, I'm guessing your date must have gone well last night" Yang winked slyly. Pyrrha lay her head on the knights shoulder in response leaving Jaune to explain. Jaune laughed nervously as he described the previous nights events,though leaving out details of their kiss because that was for Pyrrha and himself alone, earning many an 'ooh' and 'ah' from the girls.

"Not bad Jaune, not bad at all" the Brawler seemed genuinely humbled by his descriptions.

"T-thanks Yang" he replied sheepishly.

* * *

><p>It was a Monday, and that meant classes. That morning in particular was scheduled to begin with one of Professor Peter Port's <em>fascinating <em>lectures. Jaune groaned, his only consolation was that he could spend the time with Pyrrha. It was common knowledge amongst the students at Beacon that once Port got going they could all relax and enjoy hushed conversations with one another, Pyrrha and Jaune had often had these chats but today was different.

He entered the room to find his usual seat, his partner already having arrived. He took his place at her side earning himself one of her signature smiles. The professor himself arrived just as the bell rang and wasted no time before settling into his rambling of his glory days long since passed.

It was not long before he felt the Spartans hand take his own interlacing her fingers with his own. Jaune found himself blushing scarlet, butterflies erupting in his stomach. He heard giggling to his left and turned to see team RWBY, they clasped their hands and mouthed one word in unison. '_Awh_'.

At last after what had seemed like an eternity the bell rang cutting short Port as he described a series of events from his younger days in which he slaughtered a pack of Ursa single-handedly.

"Well, it seems we're out of time it seems, don't forget to have your essay on the variations of Grimm and their hunting habits on my desk no later than Thursday afternoon."

The students let out a collective groan as they all filed out.

* * *

><p>Rather than head straight to lunch, Jaune headed off to the mail-room. Giving a brief kiss to Pyrrha promising not to be gone too long he set off at a run. Jaune had been exchanging letters with his friends and family back home since being accepted into Beacon. As such, it had become his custom to check his mail first thing each week. He wasn't disappointed.<p>

He thanked the Clerk as he received his letters, and was surprised to see it was a small stack. There were the usual collection from his childhood friends, but one stood out in particular. It was a red envelope. The address was written in a hand that he hadn't seen for a good while, it was that of his youngest sister.

Ordinarily it would be Jaune's parents that wrote to him, and so it was a pleasant surprise. He decided that he would wait until that evening before he read his mail so as to avoid distraction during his next class.

The knight detoured to the dorm to drop off his mail before lazily making his way to the dining hall. There he found his friends gathered round their usual table whilst Nora explained her usual recurring dream in which she and Ren killed fifty Beowolves on their own. It wasn't a new story, but the Valkyrie's enthusiasm for telling it ensured that it was still exciting no matter how many times you heard it.

Jaune took his seat next to Pyrrha, who gave him a curious look.

"Anything particular today?"

The knight nodded enthusiastically.

"I got a letter from one of my sisters!"

"Well, what did it say?"

"I don't know, I've not read it yet. I'm gonna save it for after Goodwitch's class, y'know build the suspense"

Saying no more the knight tucked into his food, before long it was gone leaving Jaune both surprised at his sudden appetite and disappointed that there wasn't anymore.

* * *

><p>The bell rang as the two teams found their seats. Not seven seconds later Professor Goodwitch stormed in apologising for her lateness. The chief of discipline in the school fervently believed that punctuality was the single most important thing for any student to have and so any form of tardiness even seconds was abhorrent to her.<p>

The professor wasted no time in dividing the class up into partnerships for sparring. Jaune listened carefully as she called out the partnerships.

"Miss Rose will be paired with Mr Winchester and Mr Arc will face Miss Valkyrie."

The blonde cringed, his sparring sessions with Nora nearly always left him sore for the rest of the week. Despite the fact she claimed to 'go easy' on her leader Jaune always had an impressive array of bruises to display for weeks after.

The arena was split into sizeable sections by hard-light walls projected from gaps in the stone flooring, each new arena was given over to a partnership for the duration of their sparring matches.

JNPR's leader made his way to the combat square designated to himself and Nora and drew Crocea Mors. He adopted his ready stance and prepared his aura. Nora on the other-hand skipped complacently to her side of their arena and drew Magnhild. The sight of the hammer-grenade-launcher never failed to intimidate Jaune, especially when he compared it to his own weapon, a simple longsword.

The klaxon sounded, and before he could prepare his defence Nora had used the recoil from her monstrous hammer and struck with a flurry of such momentum it left him reeling. Pyrrha had told him he had a lot of aura but it still hurt whenever Magnhild connected.

The knight recovered and went on the offensive. With his best foot forward he flourished Crocea Mors and ran through the forms Pyrrha had taught him, and for a while it seemed to be going well, he acted and reacted upon impulse to respond and counter Nora's strikes, he had even landed a few hits of his own. But he was tiring, and as he tired he became slower with more and more hits snaking past his guard, that is if it is possible for one to 'snake around' anything with a huge hammer-grenade-launcher.

Nora noticed his change and made her play. She swung her hammer with all her might and struck Jaune's shield sending him to the ground. Planting Magnhild face down she pulled the trigger catapulting herself up into the air, the hyperactive Valkyrie perform a series of flips as she prepared for a momentous downward strike. Jaune saw this coming and threw his shield up in a feeble last ditch attempt to save himself, he began to glow white as his aura flared around him bracing the knight for impact.

Magnhild struck with a blinding flash and bounced off, catapulting the now confused Valkyrie across the arena. Jaune was still crouched under his shield in the centre of a massive crater. Nora lay sprawled out ten feet away. He felt exhausted, whatever had happened during her final attack had sapped him of all his spare energy, but seeing Nora injured gave him a small burst of vigour. Jaune was nothing if not completely loyal to his team mates and he would do anything for them. The knight threw down his weapons and ran to her side.

"Oh my god! Nora! Are you OK? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do...whatever it was that did."

The Valkyrie gave Jaune her famous grin and weakly gave him a thumbs up. The sheer force of her impact had left her totally drained. Jaune crouched next to her a worried look on his face.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"C-can we go for some pancakes?" she replied with childlike innocence.

A second klaxon sounded signalling the end of the duel. Professor Goodwitch stepped into the arena holding her scroll and reviewing what had just happened.

"Well Mr Arc, that was quite surprising indeed. That was one of the most interesting and reckless uses of aura I have ever seen. You have improved a great deal in your time here, however you still have yet to win a match. This duel is in fact a draw. Your bold defence of Miss Valkyrie's attack left the both of you in the red zone. As always Mr Arc I encourage you to check your aura gauge before attempting such bold courses of action so as not to over exert your aura reserves in the future."

The professor surprised the knight by giving one of her rare smiles and left him thoroughly confused. Pyrrha had unlocked the knight's aura but he had yet to master it, how had he managed to use it without meaning to?

With little else to do, Nora and Jaune both sat in the stands and watched the various other bouts that were still going. Both Pyrrha and Weiss were still fighting with Sky and Ren respectively, whilst Ruby was making short work of Cardin in her own match.

Jaune returned his attentions to his girlfriends fight. Sky didn't stand a chance, no matter what he tried the Champion was always one step ahead. The CRDL member threw a stab towards Pyrrha who easily ducked out of the way. Upon realising he had stabbed a now-empty space for what must have been the fiftieth time his frustrations began to boil over into unrestricted rage, this lack of self control only served to make it easier for Pyrrha to dodge, dip, duck, dive and dodge her way around his relentless assault.

_'She's just toying with him'_

the realisation dawned on Jaune much to his amusement. He knew Pyrrha well enough to see the games she was playing. He was offering her countless opportunities to end their match and she wasn't taking a single one. The look on the red-head's face said it all, she looked as though she could've started laughing at any given moment.

After what must have been another five minutes, Pyrrha seemingly decided that she had had enough. The other matches had all finished and Sky was beginning to grow tiresome. She waiting for his next strike, as it came she blocked with her shield. Sky seemed taken aback that he had finally landed a strike, his triumph was short lived however as he took a shield bash from Akoúo̱. As he staggered back the Huntress-in-training transformed Miló into its javelin form and, using the haft, swept sky's legs out from under him. Within mere moments the dagger wielder had ended up flat on his back with the point of Miló quivering less than an inch from his throat. The audience watched the spectacle in silence as Goodwitch stepped in to call the match.

"Thanks for the warm-up Sky."

the champion smiled warmly as she sauntered over to the stands where Jaune was stood.

"That was _incredible!_ I can't believe how quickly it all changed!"

The knight pulled his girlfriend into an enthusiastic hug as the rest of JNPR gathered around.

* * *

><p>JNPR sat in their dorm room each and every member furnished with a stack of pancakes, Ren's treat. The various members felt rejuvenated after Goodwitch's class, their various fights having taken their toll but it was nothing a shower couldn't fix, after all the healing powers of hot water are so often underplayed.<p>

"And then it was like BLAM! I just sorta flew off and next thing I know I'm on the ground. It was like I teleported Renny!"

Nora had finished reciting the story of her encounter with Jaune for what seemed the fifth time. Pyrrha had announced her pride the first time round but now she just sat giggling at the Valkyrie's account.

Jaune on the other-hand sat on his bed reading through his mail, he was saving his sister's for last. At last he got to it and tore through the envelope leaving shreds of red paper everywhere. He read through the lines with feverish intensity until finally he stopped dead. A horrified expression on his face.

"No. Way."

* * *

><p><strong>Ooh, suspense (I hope). Just as a brief heads-up, I'm back at college now so the frequency of chapters may have to drop a little. I'll do my best to keep it to at least one a week minimum. As always, if you like what you read, favorite, follow and review. It is through critique that i can improve. anyone with plot suggestions feel free to PM me and ill do my best to do them justice.<strong>

**Thanks again for reading, and T.T.F.N**


	5. Meet the Arc's

**Many of you may have guessed where i was going with this, however i hope you enjoy it all the same.**

* * *

><p><em> 'Dear Jauney,<em>

_How are you? I'm fine, school is going good, I know you worry about how well I'm doing. We did sparring in school and the teacher said I was the best in the whole class! Cool huh? Mum and Dad have told us all about your adventures since you left home, they say that you're going to be a hero like in the stories you used to read me. Did you really kill a big mean old Ursa all by yourself? It's been really boring here since you left, none of the others ever want to hang out with me like you did, they always leave me at home when they go out. Anyway, Dad says that he and Mum are going to visit you and that I can come too! I'm super excited, I can't wait to meet your team! Dad says to tell you we're coming on in two weeks, on the Monday. We get to stay there 'cause he knows the headmaster or something. I can't wait I'm already counting the days down on the Grimm calendar you got me. _

_See you soon Jauney!_

_Lots of love,_

_Marron.'_

"No. Way" Jaune repeated.

The whole of team JNPR turned to face the knight. The letter shook slightly as he held it, his hands were trembling. Jaune's face was blank and impassive as his eyes scanned the lines written before him over and over again.

"What is it Jaune? What's it say?"

The knight read over the letter once more before he stood and tucked it behind his breastplate, he turned to face his team and paused before breaking into a wide smile.

"I-it says...um...it says that my parents are coming to visit, and they're bringing my sister too."

* * *

><p>Pyrrha sat stunned into pensive silence by Jaune's revelation. She bore an expression similar to that of a deer in the headlights of a eighteen-wheeler dust truck. It had been less than a week since she had officially begun dating the Knight and now she was destined to meet his parents. To say that she was a little nervous would be the understatement of the century.<p>

Making an excuse about not feeling well and needing some air the Spartan left the dorm and headed up to the roof. She sat staring out at Ozpin's tower and desperately tried to claw her mess of thoughts back into some kind of order.

_'Why now? It wouldn't be too bad if it was in a couple of months but now? What if they don't like me, or they forbid Jaune from dating me?I just couldn't handle it. No Pyrrha! Don't think like that! They probably aren't that bad, I'll bet the-'_

"Are you alright Pyrrha? When I mentioned my parents were coming you went white as a sheet"

The Champion was torn from her thoughts by the sound of Jaune's voice. She chastised herself for phasing out so much that she hadn't heard him coming.

His speech was soft and tender, full of warmth which portrayed the depths of his affections. It put the Spartan's mind at ease, ordinarily he was the only person she felt comfortable confiding all of her troubles in. But this was different, she had no idea how to tell him that she was terrified of his parents and what their reaction to her would be.

"They're going to love you y'know?"

the Knight seemingly read her mind.

Jaune had on his usual sheepish grin. He understood his partner better than most and knew what made her tick. Not to the same degree that Ren and Nora knew one another, but he was making progress.

The Champion felt his warm hands rest on her shoulders and slowly but surely with the most delicate yet precise touch he began to massage her neck and back. He was by no means the best masseuse around but she would have no other. They sat in silence except for small gasps from the redhead if he hit a particularly tense spot. She felt her tension, apprehension and every other 'ension' melt away.

_'I'm going to have to ask him to do this more often'_

"It's all going to be fine, you have nothing to worry about. It's me that's gonna be getting grilled, probably on how I persuaded the most amazing girl at Beacon to date me."

He whispered to her with a grin, a touch of colour flew to her cheeks. Jaune could say the most charming things at just the right moments. Finally content with his work the Knight ceased in his massage efforts.

"Thanks Jaune, I-I needed that."

she released a contented sigh as she began to relax and kissed him lightly.

"If that's what I get for a little massage, we may have to make a regular thing out of it."

he chirped with a wink. The Spartan blushed cherry red and gave her Boyfriend a playful shove.

* * *

><p>With all of the classes and assignments that teams RWBY and JNPR were set, the two weeks flew by until Jaune and his team stood by the Dust-ship station awaiting the arrival of the Arcs. The leader had acquired passes for both himself and his team to skip lessons and receive Jaune's parents. Jaune stood at the forefront in his usual clothes, his armour polished brightly, clasping and unclasping his hands. Behind him stood NPR.<p>

Nora stood playing with Magnhild coyly, Ren smiled. The stoic knew that only two things could help to relax Nora and they were himself and the Hammer-grenade-launcher Magnhild.

Ren was next to the orange haired ball of hyperactivity, his hands clasped firmly behind his back. Unlike the others he was completely calm, more curious about what Jaune's parents could possibly be like.

Finally came Pyrrha, the normally calm and collected Champion couldn't stop fidgeting. Repeatedly smoothing out her familiar battle raiment. She simply couldn't stay still as she fussed over every tiny imperfection. Jaune chuckled to himself as he heard her brush down her clothes for what must have been the millionth time. He turned to her taking her hands in his own, he kissed her briefly in an attempt to put her mind at rest.

"Stop fussing. You look incredible"

she chuckled nervously and stood with slightly bolstered confidence. Jaune had the unique ability to say exactly what was necessary in these situations to put his friends' minds at rest, a fact which the members of JNPR and RWBY were immensely grateful for at times.

* * *

><p>Before long the dust-ship arrived containing Jaune's parents. JNPR stood bolt upright and waited. The doors opened and the passengers began to depart there came the sound of a commotion as three figures barrelled through the crowd and began to heave into the exact same bin Jaune had on his first day.<p>

The knight turned to his team and shrugged, chuckling nervously. JNPR all stared at him for a long while before breaking down laughing leaving Jaune bright red from embarrassment. Pyrrha couldn't help herself, she knew as everyone did that Jaune suffered from horrendous motion sickness, but the idea that both his parents and at least one sister did too was just too comical for her to handle. The four teenagers recovered from their laughing fits and made themselves busy wiping away tears and re-straightening their respective outfits before the three Arcs could join them.

The travellers having seemingly finished dealing with their motion sickness began heading towards the group. The smallest of all, a young girl whom Pyrrha assumed to be Jaune's sister waved enthusiastically as she took off towards him at a sprint. As she approached the team took in her appearance; she was quite short, her hair was a rich brunette and she had bright emerald eyes. She wore bright blue jeans and a black and orange hoodie not unlike the one Jaune had worn for initiation. It was several sizes too big, presumably one of Jaune's old ones Jaune dropped to a knee and braced for impact as the girl collided and drew him into a hug so tight, the knight feared his breastplate would cave in.

"Hey Jauney!"

"Hello short-stuff"

Jaune ruffled her hair as he stood up hefting his sister up and onto his shoulders, Marron chuckled and tugged at his hair earning a series of giggles from both Pyrrha and Nora, but he didn't care. His heart swelled at seeing his bestest bud again.

His thoughts were interrupted as a rough hand clasped his arm, turning around he saw his father with a stern look on his face, and next to him stood his mother. Mr. Arc had greying blonde hair overshadowing his craggy face. His eyes were the same colour as Jaune's. He wore a tweed smoking Jacket and corduroy trousers.

Mrs Arc was a bit of a contrast, she had similar facial features to her son. However, both her hair and eyes were different. She had similarly coloured locks to little Marron, and her eyes were an interesting cross between cerulean and green. Her clothes were in stark contrast to her husbands. She was wearing knee-high leather boots and a green frock which perfectly complimented her eyes.

Mr. Arc's stern look melted away and he laughed, it was a clear and melodic sounding laugh. His voice boomed out as he greeted his son. His wife simply beamed at him, seemingly a woman of few words.

"Jaune m'boy how are you?! You don't write nearly enough!"

the old hunter's eyes wandered to the group behind Jaune, looking them all over.

"And I assume this is the illustrious team Juniper that I've heard so very much about?"

Jaune led his father over to NPR.

"Team, I would like you to meet my parents and my youngest sister Marron."

The team gave several enthusiastic greetings with Nora practically singing hers and causing Marron to giggle again. Jaune began to introduced the individual members of NPR.

"The girl with the orange hair is Nora, she's our executive morale officer"

Nora grinned at her new title and shot Jaune a sly wink.

"Next to her is Ren, he's our expert martial artist"

"Pleased to meet you Mr and Mrs Arc."

Ren bowed slightly to each of them.

"And last but most certainly not least, this is Pyrrha Nikos. She is my partner, bes-"

he paused as Marron gave his hair a rough warning tug, he winced and corrected himself. "Second best friend after Marron of course. She is the four time Mistral champion and Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes mascot and um... s-she's also my...um...girlfriend."

Pyrrha blushed a shade of red which had yet to be named as she listened to Jaune's introduction. And stood anxiously as the two parents looked her up and down. After what seemed like hours but was only a matter of seconds Mrs. Arc stepped forward.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you Miss. Nikos. Jaune sang your praises in his letters home to us, I hope you're treating him well."

"Y-yes Mrs. Arc. I-I do my best."

"Please, call me Mabel."

Jaune's mother then turned on him and jabbed him in the chest with a long finger.

"And _you!_ Why didn't you tell me you had charmed such a lovely young woman?"

Jaune picked Marron up off his shoulders and set her down next to Pyrrha.

"W-w-well it, uh, well it...um...sorta only happened recently?"

* * *

><p>Whilst Jaune was scrambling to defend himself from his mother Pyrrha was still in shock. She had answered Mrs. A-Mabel's question as best she could and it seemed to satisfy her. Pyrrha felt a light tug on her hand and looked down to see Marron. The two sets of pure green eyes met as Pyrrha knelt down next to the girl smiling.<p>

"Hello, you must be Marron. My name's Pyrrha, pleased to meet you."

Marron shook the Champion's hand gently and stared at her wide eyed and open mouthed.

"I-is it true?" Marron asked, her soft voice had a quizzical edge.

"Is what true?"

"Are you really Jauney's girlfriend? A-and are you really the girl from the Pumpkin Pete's boxes?"

Pyrrha giggle, Jaune's little sister was just too adorable.

"You better believe it" Pyrrha gave a sly wink.

* * *

><p>Jaune and his mother were torn from their debate by a loud growling. Fearing that one of the Grimm from the forest had got into the campus again they all began to frantically scan their surroundings. Jaune's eyes settled on his sister. Her face was bright red and she had one hand clasped to her mouth and the other to her stomach.<p>

"s-sorry"

Jaune beamed at his sister trying desperately not to laugh.

"C'mon little one lets go get you something to eat. Ren? Think you could drum up some of your special pancakes?"

* * *

><p><strong>And there it was, i liked the idea of introducing Jaune's family to the mix. I like to imagine Jaune as being the super-caring older brother type and that was pretty difficult to write. As always, feel free to follow, favorite and review my work, all criticism is helpful. Any ideas for the plot then PM them to me.<strong>


	6. Fun in the Sun

**Hello again! a slightly longer chapter for you today, so far, 'the Sword and Spear' has reached 5,000 views, 7 follows and 45 favorites which is truly astounding. so thank-you to all of you loyal sailors aboard the flagship arkos. and now i present the latest installment!.**

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><p>The strong smell of fresh pancakes hung in the air as the group sat polishing off their stacks of pancakes. The team had broken out their small fold-away table and chairs they used when hosting RWBY over for card tournaments or breakfast.<p>

Marron had grinned wildly before wolfing down more pancakes than anyone had though possible for a girl of her size. She seemed to like Ren's pancakes almost as much as Nora.

"Master Ren, these are simply delightful, I shall have to get your recipe!"Mr arcs voice boomed out with gusto urging Ren to smile and discuss the various ingredients.

The small group finished their hearty breakfast and lazed elected to laze around as their breakfast/lunch settled. Nora was busy playing pat-a-cake with Marron a wide smile adorning both their faces, whilst Pyrrha and Jaune all busied themselves chatting with the knight's parents. Ren sat with a smirk upon his lips as he watched Nor and Marron, the two seemed as peas in a pod.

"So you all share a room together?" It had been the primary topic that Mrs. Arc had taken upon their entry to the dorm room, the concept that her son was living in co-ed accommodation concerned her deeply, it provided these girls with an opportunity to corrupt her innocent little boy.

"Yes, Ozpin believes that if we are being trained to fight and kill the creatures of Grimm we can be trusted not to do anything...inappropriate."

The frown faded slightly before manifesting itself even more than before.

Mr. Arc chuckled, it was a deep, rumbling sound that reverberated throughout the room.

"Mabel dear, I think we can trust Jaune to be sensible. He _is _a grown man now, and whether we like it or not, we have to let him make his own decisions."

Jaune beamed at his father. He was placing trust and independence in him, allowing the young knight the opportunity to grow.

"Now that we are fed, courtesy of Jaune's team's hospitality. I think it's high-time we paid a visit to our old friend Ozzy. Jaune m'boy, would you be so kind as to take us to see the professor?"

* * *

><p>Jaune led his parents and team down through the halls and over to the base of Ozpin's tower. He walked with his parents, cringing as his father told Pyrrha various embarrassing tales from his youth.<p>

"-and then we heard a loud crash coming from the kitchen, so we run in to find a bowl of cake-mix all over the floor and our little rascal covered head to toe a cheeky grin all over his face. I mean how can you be angry at that?"

Pyrrha and his father both exploded into fresh waves of mirth, their laughter ringing clear across the courtyard.

Behind him Nora carried Marron in piggy-back style and dashed this way and that mimicking a dust-plane and earning squeals of excitement from the younger girl.

The emerald tower loomed over them before long, its heavy stone serving to block out the summer sun and cast them in its formidable shadow. Heading through the main doors and into a grand foyer he led them towards the sole elevator.

"Louis Arc?"

From behind them came the measured tone of the professor they all wheeled around to find the professor himself with his ever present coffee mug and smug expression.

"Ozzy!"

Louis leapt forward and clasped the wily professor into a bear hug.

"Louis, it is good to see you and it has been altogether too long. But if you don't let go then you threaten to crush the life out of me."

The older Arc released him and smiled bashfully. Ozpin's gaze switched to Mrs. Arc a gleeful expression dancing about his face.

"Is that you Mabel? You haven't aged a day, still as beautiful as ever."

Ozpin gave Louis a sly wink earning a chuckle whilst Mabel tried to keep her composure as best as she could. The professor smiled warmly and turned to team JNPR.

"Jaune, your parents and I have much to discuss, might I suggest that you give your sister a proper tour of the campus?"

Jaune nodded.

* * *

><p>It was a glorious August afternoon as the five emerged from Ozpin's tower. The sun blazed brightly in a clear blue sky. They shielded their eyes as they adjusted to the bright light. Not wanting to waste the weather they headed off to the lawns via the dorm at Nora's insistence, she insisted on retrieving her trusty Frisbee.<p>

The group walked through the garden, Marron firmly fixed onto her brothers shoulders. She barraged JNPR gleefully with questions which Nora was only too happy answer with growing enthusiasm and rapid hand gestures.

"Did you Really kill a giant death-stalker?"

The young girl's eyes grew wide as Nora recounted the tale from their initiation.

"-and if it hadn't been for our fearless leader it might have squished us into syrup!"

Jaune chuckled,

"Naaah, you guys would've found some way to beat it without me."

Not soon after they reached the same lawn under which their leader and his partner had shared their first kiss. They ducked under the willow and out of the blistering sun. Jaune lifted Marron off of his shoulders and setting her down on the light turf with a ruffle of her hair. Before slumping against the tree.

Deciding it was too warm, the knight pulled off his armour and piled it besides him before removing his hoodie so that all remained was his plain black T-shirt. He huffed desperately as he tried to cool himself down.

Pyrrha turned slightly pink at the sight. Her harsh training regimen had taken its toll, he wasn't the noodle armed teenager he had been. He was now a great deal more formed the redhead smiled to herself

_'he's gonna need some bigger t-shirts'_

* * *

><p>The five spent the afternoon in relative peace. Nora and Marron had been enjoying a game of Ultimate Frisbee and had, after much coaxing and a fiendish use of Nora's most adorable pout, persuaded Ren to join in. The two lovers sat together under the tree peacefully napping in the summer heat. She sat with her head against his chest and her legs draped across his own. Comfortable smiles adorned their faces, they were the visage of young love and happiness.<p>

Marron shot a glance over to her brother and frowned ever so slightly. She was more than happy that he had found someone whom he loved and who loved him in return, but she couldn't shake a slight feeling of jealousy. No longer would she have his brother's undivided attention when they were around one another. She would have to share him with the Champion, he might even lose interest in her like their older sisters had done and simply ignore her.

She shook the thought from her head. Jaune wouldn't ever do that, he'd said it himself, Pyrrha was his second-best friend, and Marron still held top spot. Nevertheless a small seed of doubt was planted, and besides Jaune couldn't spend all his time with Pyrrha. They young brunette waited for her chance and the next time the Frisbee came towards her she half-heartedly reached for it, letting it fly over towards the snoozing pair. On her way to retrieve it she detoured towards her brother and gave his shoulder a light shake.

Jaune opened his eyes groggily to see his little sister beaming what was perhaps the cutest smile he'd ever seen. He gave her a quizzical look. The young girl simply presented the bright-yellow Frisbee to him with a pleading look in her deep green eyes.

"Pleeeease Jauney?"

The knight couldn't help but chuckle as he carefully extricated himself from under his partner. He positioned his hoody between her head and the rough bark of the tree and gave her forehead a light kiss and went off to join in the game with his sister, a triumphant smile shining across her features.

_'Butter wouldn't melt'_

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><p>When Pyrrha awoke she noticed two things; the sky had darkened slightly and blazed bright orange due to the impending sunset, and secondly that Jaune was gone. She sat up and arched her back until she heard a series of popping sounds. Standing up she looked around. Lying on the grass not far away were the three remaining members of her team and little Marron.<p>

They were all on their backs with their heads together staring up at the sky and pointing to the various wispy clouds that had blown in while she slept. She could hear snatches of their chatter.

"Ooh! Ooh, look Ren! That one looks like a sloth!"

The champion chuckled, whenever the team took time out of their busy schedule they often cloud-gazed and Nora would always point out clouds claiming they either looked like sloth or pancakes, even if they never did. She heard Marron giggle.

"Nora, that's not a sloth! It's an otter!"

"Yeah! If that's a sloth then I'm a Grimm's uncle"

The dulcet tones of the knight piped up. The three voices broke into a friendly debate with Nora and Marron debating if it was an otter or sloth and Jaune proclaiming that it looked more like a turtle. Pyrrha walked over to join them.

She knelt on the grass beside her boyfriend's head, it was springy and cool to the touch. Leaning over his face she gazed right into the unfathomable lakes he called eyes.

"Actually, I believe it looks like a beowolf in a party hat."

"Hello beautiful"

his signature smile dominated his features as she kissed him sweetly. As she pulled away she noted that his skin had a more reddish tone to it than his usual post-kiss blush. No doubt a result of his prolonged contact with the harsh rays of the sun, she chuckled to herself.

_'he'll feel it tomorrow.'_

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><p>Jaune checked his scroll, it was beginning to get late. With a sigh he hefted himself to his feet and collected his armour and hoodie from beneath the tree. Slinging the plates over his shoulder he returned to the group who also busied themselves to return to the residential block for a well earned rest.<p>

The knight shot a message to his father asking where they could rendezvous for Marron's return. He received a swift reply informing him that they were lodging in the guest wing. The group moved relatively quickly across campus to the relatively unused guest wing. It was kept clean in readiness just in case a dignitary or parent decided to visit. They knocked on the room which housed the Arcs. The door was swiftly opened by Mr. Arc.

Marron hopped down from Nora's back and proceeded to hug the Valkyrie goodnight. Nora eagerly snatched the smaller girl into a light bear hug, a wide grin plastered across her face. Ren gently shook her hand and smiled one of his rare smiles.

"It's been a pleasure getting to know you Marron, sleep well."

The tiny brunette made her way over to Pyrrha and gave her a light hug, the Champion bidding her a good night's sleep. Finally she turned to Jaune. The knight wrapped her into his arms for a few moments and released her ruffling a hand through her hair as was his custom.

"Goodnight Jauney!"

The smallest of the Arcs beamed a toothy grin to her brother who smiled in return.

"Don't forget to come see us train tomorrow, I can't have my bestest buddy in the whole world come to stay without being there to cheer us on."

"I'll be there Jauney, I promise!"

He drew her into another hug before kissing her head and wishing her a good night. Mr Arc gave his son a brief hug before ushering little Marron into their accommodation. The door closed with a resounding 'click' that echoed throughout the empty hallway.

Finally, after their long and tiring day, team JNPR returned to their shared room, Ren and Nora walked together as she talked the stoical boy's ear off. Behind them trailed their leader and his partner. The strolled at a relaxed place with her arm around his own.

"My family seemed rather fond of you, Marron especially."

Pyrrha nodded thoughtfully.

"Your father seems to be on our side, I'm not quite sure about your mother. She seems to be rather unsure of me."

"She'll come round. She's always been really protective of me, but give her time and she'll see just how amazing you are."

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><p>The team arrived at their little room and prepared for bed. Jaune gathered his towel and pyjamas then hit the showers. He let the warm water flow over him as he pondered over the day's events. He had enjoyed the afternoon with his sister and his team in the sun. It had reminded him just how much he had missed his 'Bestest-buddy' in the time since he had left home for Beacon.<p>

His father and sister had seemingly accepted his Red-head with open arms, but Pyrrha was right. His mother had seemed...a little frost towards her. The knight reassured himself that she would come around with time.

Jaune finished his shower and switched into a loose pair of lounge pants and a plain snugly-fitting white t-shirt, having finally got around to buying a more age-appropriate set of PJ's the previous weekend. He returned to the dorm and lumbered over to his bed to settle down for the night.

Before long he heard a faint rustling followed by soft footfalls. They came closer and closer, stopping at the edge of his bed.

"J-Jaune, are you awake?"

His girlfriend's rich voice rippled through the air in a whisper. He opened his eyes to find her stood by his bed, the pale moonlight reflected in her bright emerald eyes.

"Pyrrha? Is everything OK?"

he replied drowsily, trying not to wake Ren and Nora. His Champion frowned slightly.

"No, I can't sleep, I just can't get comfortable."

Jaune looked up into her sparkling eyes, the had an element of expectancy to them that he had only seen a few times before. He considered his options before scooting over to make room for her slender form next to him. He opened up his duvet to accept her and she climbed in next to him.

The Champion lay her head on his chest and relaxed as the rhythmic rise and fall of his breathing lulled her towards sleep. He wrapped an arm around her tenderly and closed his eyes. The red-head sighed contentedly.

"Much better." she mumbled before slipping into the realm of dreams, a warm smile etched upon her face. The knight chuckled quietly before submitting himself to sleep's warm embrace.

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><p><strong>Can i get an 'Awh' from the audience? i hope you enjoyed it, it has been by far one of my favourite chapters so far to write. As always, follow, favourite, review and PM with any ideas for the plot, and ill see all of you, in the next chapter<strong>


	7. A Bet, a Demonstration, a Victory

**Bit of a lengthier chapter today, I couldn't quite decide where to end it so i kinda just kept going, this was my first real attempt at writing a conflict based chapter.I hope you enjoy chapter 7.**

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><p>Jaune awoke to a face full of red hair and smiled. He kissed her head lightly and ran his fingers through her hair. It was a rare opportunity, ordinarily the Spartan would be awake long before the blonde..<p>

The knight cast a brief glance around the room, Nora lay half on and half off her bed, her the crown of her head rested upon the floor whilst her legs remained on the mattress. Jaune couldn't help but chuckle as the Valkyrie attempted to roll over bringing the remainder of her body crashing to the floor.

Pyrrha stirred at the loud thud, taking a few moments to gather her bearings she cast a look up at the knight. Jaune kissed his red-head, a familiar burst of warmth flowing from his heart.

"Good morning beautiful, did you sleep well?"

The Champions cheeks coloured slightly at his greeting, and gave him a sly wink.

"Yep, we should do this more often, you're much more comfortable than my bed is."

Jaune gave his sheepish grin and resumed combing his hand through her hair. The red-head gave a sigh of contentment and lay her head on his chest once more. She occupied herself by listening to the rhythmic beat of his heart. The couple settled in as Jaune his free hand to ensnare one of hers.

The two were torn from their trance by Nora stirring. The Valkyrie stumbled to her feet with a look of confusion. She scanned the room with hazy eyes before settling on the couple. She smiled mischievously before laughing to herself and skipping over to Ren to wake him.

Pyrrha left the warmth of the Knight's arms and left for the showers. Jaune was about to do the same as his scroll vibrated. He tapped the screen to reveal a message from Ozpin.

_'Teams JNPR and RWBY report to the training facility for a demonstration at 10:00 sharp.'_

The scroll's readout read as 7:30, plenty of time. Throwing his scroll onto his pillow he headed out the door. Before he had gone more than a step he collided with something soft and fell to the floor.

Jaune came to his senses and found himself entangled with the young leader of team RWBY. Faster than the eye could follow, with a face matching the colour of Ruby's hair and a seemingly endless string of apologies, the knight was on his feet and helping his friend to her feet.

"Oh! Hey Jaune!"

"Hey Ruby"

He gave her one of his famous sheepish grins, she returned the favour by beaming him one of her own.

"I got the message from Ozpin, looks like our teams are gonna go head to head! You excited?"

The Reaper was practically hopping up and down on the spot. She was wearing her signature combat skirt and bullets. He chuckled at her enthusiasm and shot her a grin.

"You bet I am, I hope you guys are ready to get _squished_!"

"Oh really Vomit-Boy? Why don't we make this interesting?"

Jaune cringed at the use of his old nickname and weighed up the chances of his winning any bets. Ruby had a devilish grin across her face and mischievous gleam in her eye, almost goading him.

"Alright Crater-Face, I'll bite. What did you have in mind?"

"How about if we win you gotta let all of us paint you in make-up and you gotta keep it on all day? Yang will have a field day!"

Jaune considered it, Yang could be merciless in her teasing and this would be solid gold to her. And how would Marron react if he lost?

"And what do we get if we win?"

The red-head seemed shocked, she went silent in thought. The knight could practically hear the cogs whirring as his fellow leader struggled to come up with an offer.

"How about my whole team offers back and foot rubs to all of yours?"

The blonde laughed. It was almost too good an offer to refuse, he had every faith in his team and had every confidence that they could win.

"Alright Ruby, you're on! Just how are you gonna convince the others?"

"Just you leave that to me. Just be prepared for your make-over!"

The red-head turned and re-entered her dorm, there was a brief pause, then an explosion of voices and a series of bumps, crashes and shrieks. The blonde laughed nervously and left for the showers.

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><p>Team JNPR finished their breakfasts and returned to the dorm to brush their teeth where Jaune explained his bet, toothpaste dripping down his chin as he did. Nora became an even greater ball of excitement leaving Ren to attempt to calm her down, the Valkyrie loved fighting, but even more so when there was a prize involved. The knight felt a light tug on his arm as his partner took him off to one side.<p>

"Jaune, are you sure about this?"

"I weighed up the pros and cons Pyrrha, I decided it was worth the gamble. If I can wear a dress to the dance, I can wear make-up for a day"

The Champion smiled at the memory of her boyfriend in a dress. To say she was shocked would be the understatement of the century, but no-one had ever gone to such lengths for her and she had loved him for it.

"Well, if you're sure..."

"I'm positive, I have every faith in you guys."

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><p>Team JNPR collected their weapons from their lockers and began a leisurely walk to the training centre. The weather had yet to choose a course for the day, it was overcast with threats of a summer rain.<p>

The high-tech facility was a short walk from the centre of campus having only been built two years before. It was a great circular building comprised of three floors, each dedicated to a different angle of training with one underground and two above. The basement housed the live fire marksmanship ranges, and the free weights rooms. The ground floor was home to the four huge sparring rooms, and the top floor housed the simulation rooms equipped with a wide range of Grimm-sim robots.

The team arrived to find RWBY, Ozpin, the Arcs and Goodwitch, equipped with her ever present frown. RWBY was a comical image. The team's leader and namesake stood in the midst of a severely pissed off looking Weiss,Blake and Yang. Jaune chuckled and whispered to his partner

"I guess they didn't take to kindly to the arrangement."

This earned a smirk from the redhead.

Ozpin stepped forward from the group.

"Ah Mr. Arc, now that both teams are here we can begin the demonstration. If both teams could make your way into the arena. Louis, Mabel and little Marron, please follow me to the stands. We will have good view from there. Glynda, if you wouldn't mind accompanying the teams and serving as the match official."

Goodwitch nodded and followed after the two teams.

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><p>The two teams walked in single file, not a word spoken between them. Every one of them was lost in thought, carefully preparing themselves for the match ahead. Jaune pondered how he would arrange and use his team most effectively against their rivals.<p>

_'Nora will have to go against Yang. She's the only one that can match her blow for blow and has the energy to sustain it. I'll leave Blake to Ren, her combat style isn't two far from his, they both make use of the martial arts although Ren may have the advantage. Pyrrha can handle Weiss, she didn't win the championships four times in a row for nothing. And that leaves Ruby and I, with her speed it'll be difficult to keep up, not to mention that sniper could take my head clean off...that is if the Scythe doesn't get me first. She relies on hit and run attacks, so if I-'_

Jaune was brutally torn from his thoughts as the passed through the final set of doors into the arena by the sound of roaring applause. Looking up and into the stands he saw a large proportion of the first years and some of the older students. This he had not accounted for. It was no secret that RWBY and JNPR were the two top teams of their year group and so when the two clashed it was an event to see. With Goodwitch being present to preside over the demonstration her class had been cancelled and as a result the students had come to watch. Go figure. Pyrrha squeezed his shoulder with a reassuring smile.

The two teams split apart to opposite sides of the arena to plan their tactics.

"OK, here's the deal, Nora I need you to keep Yang occupied by _any means necessary. _Basically, just do what you do best. Pyrrha, you tackle Weiss, remember to watch out for her dust-based attacks and keep your guard up. Ren, you've got Blake, remember she will most likely use her after-images against you, try and trace her aura and attack. And I'll keep Ruby busy. Try and deal with your opponents quickly, I'll need all the help I can get with our resident Speedy Gonzales. Are we all OK with the plan?"

The team nodded as Jaune finished his brief and headed to the centre to meet Ruby. She gave him her same mischievous that she had in the halls that morning, only this time it was almost...intimidating.

"I want a clean match, try and keep all strikes below lethal. Each member will be withdrawn as their Aura hits the red leaving the rest to finish the match. Best of luck to the both of you, now shake hands."

The two leaders did and returned to their teams, Jaune gave his team the widest smile he could muster.

"OK team JNPR, give no quarter! It shall be foot rubs at dusk!"

The knight drew his sword and held it aloft as though to illustrate his point as his three teammates drew their weapons and dropped into their respective battle stances. Crocea Mors gleamed in a fierce light.

Ruby could feel the seething anger from her teammates as they too readied their own armaments. This would be a rough battle and they all knew it, nothing could be left to chance. If there was one thing Ruby knew about Jaune, it was that he was a fantastic tactician, capable of changing the tide of a fight in mere moments. She remembered all too well their encounter with the death-stalker, he had managed to direct his team in such a manner that they ruthlessly tore it apart one weakness at a time.

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><p>Jaune shot a casual glance up to his sister in the stands, she was wearing her hoodie and jeans combo again. She was enthusiastically waving a 'JNPR' flag and a large foam finger, presumably gifts from Ozpin or the older Arcs. He caught her eye and she beamed a toothy grin at him.<p>

The audience went silent in anticipation as Goodwitch prepared to start the match, she sounded the klaxon and the two teams shot into action. To his left and right he caught glimpses of his team running to engage, Nora chuckled like a girl possessed as she hefted Magnhild over her head and ran forward.

_'OK Jaune, remember your training. Steady your breathing, focus. Now where is Ru-'_

Before he had time to react he had hit the ground. The wind rushed out of his lungs leaving his gasping desperately, the crowds exploding into groans of empathy. Ruby stood over him poised to deliver a downward strike that would take him out of commission. A cloud of rose petals slowly falling around her. It was a strangely beautiful sight, well, beautiful and terrifying.

"Yield."

The Reaper's tone was blunt and merciless. Jaune weighed up his options, he couldn't yield and let his team down, and yet his options ran thin. Crocea Mors lay roughly ten feet away on the cold stone. He was alone. His shield would be of little use, it would take too long to produce when her final strike came, that left him with nought but his aura. It was a gamble, Pyrrha was still teaching him to master it, it was a wild card, but one which might just work.

He drew at the energy within just as Pyrrha had taught him to and gave a defiant grin,

"Not on your life!"

"Hmph..."

The red-head swung and time seemed to slow down. The point of her scythe becoming the only object of his focus. His skin began to glow white-hot as the full force of his soul flowed out to stop the blade. The passage of what Jaune believed could be his final seconds ground to a near halt.

There came a blinding flash of white light, the audience gasped in shock. When their eyes adjusted again, Crescent Rose hovered an inch from Jaune's chest. His hair-brain half-plan had worked! Well kinda, the Knight felt as though he'd run a marathon. He placed his palms in-between the blade and his flesh, re-enforcing his aura flow he began to push the scythe back.

The two leaders stood locked in a titanic battle of wills, neither willing to back down and accept defeat. Neither so much as flinched at the resounding crack of Ren snapping Blake's wrist, or the yelp as Ren was fully encased in ice. They focused only upon one another.

The blonde noticed in anguish that his strength was failing, the point of Crescent Rose was creeping back towards him. In desperation he cast a look about, Ren and Blake were out of the match, Nora and Yang were still trading hits of earth-shattering magnitude and Pyrrha was hacking away at the Ice Queen herself.

His gaze once fell upon little Marron and his parents. Their smiles had faded to a look of deep concern. He returned his focus to the scythe, now half an inch from him and slowly moving closer. His mind began to wander, he thought of his family and how disappointed they'd be if his team lost. He thought of the look of worry and fear in her eyes as he fought for his life. He thought of the ridicule Yang would force him to endure if he lost. He couldn't lose. For Marron, his partner and his self respect he would have to win.

With these images of the consequences of his failure firmly fixed in his mind he felt new vigour. The aches and pains of his exhaustion lifted as he began to push the rose back. He pushed himself upright fighting to gain a footing. The audience were silent, hundreds of eyes transfixed on the power struggle.

He pressed against her with all of his might, the strains showing on both their faces. The knight pushed with every fibre of his being, his aura blindingly bright. Suddenly, there came a loud creak and a metallic ringing. Jaune felt an explosion of pain as something tore through his cheek before being launched to the floor in a blinding flash.

His vision blurred as he once again sat up. Ruby lay a number of feet away, severe confusion etched on her face. In her hands lay her 'beloved', the final seven inches of the blade was sheared off. She cast a glance at her rival and confusion changed to horror, she pointed to him with a shaking hand.

He felt something drip down his cheek, running a hand across the left side of his face he found it damp. Pulling his hand away he found it dyed crimson with his own blood. Shock set in as the blonde felt waves of nausea flow over him. After dry-heaving twice he checked his reflection in his scroll. A long jagged cut ran up his cheek and was bleeding profusely, he steeled himself and tried to draw forth any remaining aura but found he could not. He powered on his scroll and read his aura levels. It gauged in the red, he was out. He briefly glanced at Ruby's, she too had spent her aura in their test of strength, and with Crescent Rose being severely damaged she was out of the running. He walked over and retrieved his sword, sheathing it he offered his opponent his clean hand. She took it and the two headed off to the sidelines first aid post to get Jaune treated and to spectate the remainder of the match.

Nora and Yang seemed to be on the point of collapse, the two stood weapons locked. The head of Magnhild pressed firmly against Ember Celica. With a fiendish grin Nora pulled the trigger detonating one of her custom grenades and sending both fighters on a short flight in opposite directions, neither having the strength to get back up.

_'Only Pyrrha and Weiss left.'_

The two were trading fierce blows with one another, they were in more or less the centre of the arena in an area covered in large ice crystals and heavy scorth marks, evidence of Weiss' unrelenting assaults. Pyrrha had closed with the Heiress, Miló in its sword form. At such close proximity she held the advantage. Weiss was unable to effectively employ her rapier in the stabbing, thrusting patterns it was designed for, as a result she struggled to block effectively allowing Pyrrha to cause mass damage almost uncontested.

The final strike came as the champion threw Akoúo̱, the heiress deflected it, sending it harmlessly behind herself. Pyrrha stepped up her offensive her aura flaring black, Weiss knew what was happening and before she had time to react, the round shield collided solidly with the back of her head sending her sprawling. Not allowing her opponent the chance to counter-attack she switched Miló to its spear form and levelled the point with the base of the Ice Queen's skull.

The crowd went wild roaring with applause and cheers as the klaxon sounded to end the match the Redhead pulled the Heiress to her feet.. He ran forward and pulled Pyrrha into a tight hug spinning her around. The two laughed in their victory. Before stumbling over to check on Nora.

The Valkyrie lay unconscious her usual grin plastered on her face. Jaune steeled himself wearily plucked her off the ground to carry her over to the medibay.

"D-did I do good?"

she managed to croak out a few weak words. Her leader shushed her softly.

"You did great Nora, I'm proud of ya, and guess what? We won! "

Her face lit up at his compliments before she once again succumbed to exhaustion and went limp, her breathing calm and steady.

Team JNPR celebrated on the sidelines as best they could in their shattered state. Jaune felt woozy by the time it was his turn for treatment, he had insisted that his team be seen before himself.

He winced in pain, his eyes welling up as the nurse cleaned and dressed his cut. She told him it probably wasn't as bad as it had looked and with luck wouldn't scar too badly. The Knight thanked the nurse and walked to his team. On the way he stopped Ruby.

"That was a great match! Though I'm sorry about Crescent Rose, think you can fix her?"

"Yeah, it shouldn't be too bad, at most I'll only have to replace the blade, a simple procedure really."

"Well, I'm glad."

He left the rose and led his team to the locker rooms.

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><p>Jaune left the locker rooms with his team and was nearly barreled over by his younger sister. She had surprising strength for one so small. Her emerald eyes sparkled as she looked up at him. She was still clutching her little flag and foam hand. Next to him stood his parents, proud smiles etched upon their faces.<p>

"Well fought all of you" Mr Arc boomed.

The older Arcs turned to the rather dejected looking team RWBY. Yang, Weiss and Ruby were still in fair shape, but Blakes arm was sealed up in a cast.

"I'm glad that my Son has such a fine set of Hunter and huntresses to watch his back."

At this the team seemed to brighten up, a touch of pride illuminating their features.

"Sir, Jaune has been a good friend to us all. It is our privilege to be able to fight besides him."

Jaune went on to make the introductions of team RWBY.

"This is Ruby, my rival and their team leader, behind her is her sister Yang, and then there's Weiss and Blake."

the team gave simple greetings at the sound of their names and Weiss gave a small curtsy.

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><p>Team JNPR crashed through the door and into their dorm room, utterly spent from their battle. Jaune stumbled over to his bed and collapsed upon it, it felt so soft and perfect. The Knight groaned and dragged himself up and off to the showers, the the rest of his team soon followed. In the hallway they joined up with team RWBY and continued their walk for the hot water and relaxation it would provide, they resembled the march of the dead as they shuffled along with their shoulders hunched. Even Nora had lost the bounce in her step.<p>

Jaune turned on the shower and felt immediate relief as the water rushed over his body. Its effects were magical, loosening up his muscles and washing away his aches and pains. He let out a satisfied sigh and went about his usual shower routine of; five minutes washing, half hour contemplating his performances as a leader.

The blonde returned to the dorm partially reinvigorated and once again collapsed on his bed, he still had several hours to burn before they all met his parents for dinner he set his scroll's alarm. He closed his eyes as he heard the door open, shuffled footsteps headed his way and a familiar form climbed in next to him. He cracked open his eyes to once again find Pyrrha with him in her usual red and gold night gown, head resting above his heart. He placed an arm around her and drifted off to sleep.

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><p>The alarm blared out tearing the partners from sleep. He reached over and shut the noise off. The room became alive with activity as the four teenagers dragged themselves from their beds and rubbed the sleep from their eyes.<p>

Jaune stretched out before donning a fresh set of jeans and hoodie. Pyrrha smiled as she noticed the sizeable hole in its hood, it was the same one he had worn for initiation. She was surprised that he still had it.

The team left their dorm and knocked on RWBY's door, Ruby answered and they were joined by their rivals. The two teams made their way to the canteen at a leisurely pace, they chatted animatedly about their match.

"Ruby, did you manage to fix Crescent Rose?"

the inquired, he knew that the little Reaper wouldn't have rested until her beloved was back to its same old self.

"Its in the forge, I had the Beacon smith take a look at it, he said it should be fixed by tomorrow morning."

"so no permanent damage?"

"Nope, it'll take a little more than a broken blade to put my beloved out of action for more than a day."

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><p>They entered the cafeteria to find the Arcs already occupying their usual table. The two teams joined the queues for the various foodstuffs and returned laden with mounds of food. Jaune set down his own meal of Roasted potatoes, Lamb and a lake's worth of gravy. He dove in realising his hunger, and regretting having skipped lunch.<p>

The eight teenagers said very little until they each finished their meals, pushing away their empty plates they each breathed a sigh of contentment. They all moved onto animated conversations about all manner of topics,Yang and Pyrrha both plied the older Arcs with questions about Jaune's youth, the Knight turned a shade redder with each subsequent anecdote his parents told. Ruby took a vested interest in Marron and the two were soon chatting like old friends over what was left of Ruby's third plate of cookies. Jaune smiled, glad that his friends had been so accepting of his family.

They had been talking for what seemed like hours, the cafeteria had long since emptied of students leaving the Arcs, RWBY and JNPR alone. The sounds of their voices and laughter echoes off of the walls. The Arcs were the first to leave.

"Our Dust-plane leaves early tomorrow, so we had best be getting some rest. Come on Marron say goodnight to our friends."

Jaune's little sister got up and hugged her brother tightly. As she released him he gave her hair a light ruffle and smiled.

The tiny brunette subsequently went around bidding each of the teenagers a good night's sleep and made to leave with her parents. The two teams promised to be at the air station to see them off the following morning before class.

Shortly after, the two teams made their move to return to their respective dorm rooms. Jaune gave Ruby a smile before he entered his dorm room.

"Oh, Ruby! One more thing."

she gave him one of her quizzical glances.

"What is it Jaune?"

"Don't think I've forgotten our agreement."

He gave her a wink and closed the door leaving Ruby standing in the silent hallway.

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><p>Pyrrha changed back into her night gown and made her way to Jaune's bed. She found the Knight already sound asleep, the day's activities having fully drained him of energy. His covers were rolled back and he slept off to one side in anticipation of his partner's arrival. A smile leapt to her face as she deftly climbed in next to him and lay her head on his shoulder, ever so lightly so as to not disturb his rest. The Champion kissed the blonde upon the cheek and closed her eyes. The sound of his breathing synchronized with her own as she drifted into her dreams.<p>

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><p><strong>So there it was,you requested RWBY and i tried to deliver. Let me know if you prefer longer chapters like this one. Next chapter will probably be a little more tame. As always please followfavourite if you enjoyed this. feel free to review and PM me with plot ideas.**


	8. Fond Farewells

**Hey guys, sorry for the delay on this one. College work and writers block truly are a gruesome twosome. still here were are at last, another lengthier chapter as we bid a fond farewell to the Arcs. We've passed 8000 views now which is incredible. I wanna thank everyone who has favourited and followed so far. It's you guy that keep this going**

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><p>Teams JNPR and RWBY had awoken to a clear and bright morning. The newly risen sun had bathed the campus in its warmth, everything felt fresh and crisp. The morning dew covered the school's lawns in droplets that shone with breath-taking brilliance.<p>

The plateau which served as the landing pad for dust-plane traffic was deserted save for a small group of eleven and various air crew preparing their craft for departure. The dust-planes served as a means for getting supplies in and out of the Beacon campus, and as such traffic was fairly frequent.

As the two teams arrived they saw the three Arcs stood talking to Ozpin. The headmaster sipping at his coffee. At seeing the approach of the teens he reached out and shook Mr. Arc's hand firmly before turning to leave. He bid the teams a good morning as he walked past and onwards towards the emerald tower.

Louis Arc, Jaune's bear of a father grinned as he clapped a hand on his son's shoulder but the Knight noticed his mirth never quite reached his eyes.

"Well Jaune m'boy, your mother and I are very proud of you. We never thought when you left that you'd be leading your own team, and a fine team they are."

Jaune blushed a lightish-red as he puffed his chest out like a rooster. His father gave him a wink.

"You take care now y'hear? Of yourself and your friends."

"I-I will, I promise."

Mr Arc gave his son a nod of approval before turning to address the rest of the teens.

"I want to thank all of you too, we couldn't have asked for a more hospitable reception. Jaune is lucky to count you all as friends."

The two teams all fought off looks of embarrassment, many turning away to hide the red tinge that their cheeks had taken.

"You're welcome!"

Nora chirped, her exuberance earning a hearty chuckle from the retired hunter. His father moved in and in a swift movement drew his son into a crushing bear hug. The assembled teams winced as they heard their friend's back pop two or three times. At the sound the hunter released his son and scratched the back of his head and chuckling nervously, Jaune just rubbed his back.

Next along came Mrs. Arc, she too drew her son into a hug although softer than her husband's. She kissed her son on the cheek causing the knight to once again flush a deep scarlet, he squirmed slightly trying to break out of her hold.

"Mooooooooom, not in front of the guys..."

Unable to resist the opportunity she backed out and pinched his cheek, in her most patronising voice she spoke loud enough for all to hear a mischievous smile playing upon her lips.

"Awh, is my little Jauney embarrassed in front of his friends?"

Jaune heard his friends stifle laughs behind him as he shot daggers at his dear old mother, the look held no real malice. Before the Knight could retort she had stepped away and over to his team.

"It was a great to meet you all, I wish you all the best for your time here at Beacon and beyond."

Pyrrha's eyes darted about nervously as suddenly the older woman's gaze bore down on her. She leant forward ever so slightly and spoke in a hushed voice.

"It was a pleasure to meet you Pyrrha, it's clear to me that Jaune really is very fond of you. However know that if you hurt him, no place on remnant will be safe from my wrath."

The redhead nodded nervously to which Mabel smiled warmly her point having clearly gotten through. She took a few steps back making room for Marron to say her final good-byes.

The little girl walked forward and to Jaune's surprise she walked straight past him and over to Ruby, Nora and Pyrrha.

"I-it was great meeting you guys! I-I'm glad you're all there to look after Jauney."

The three huntresses each took a turn to hug the petite brunette each mumbling their respective goodbyes and requesting that she 'stay in touch' save for Nora who shot her a wide smile and told her to 'Keep practising her sloth impression' and shooting her a knowing wink.

"It's almost as good as mine!"

Marron chuckled lightly before bidding the rest of JNPR and RWBY goodbye and returning over to Jaune. The Knight knelt his sister tackle-hugged him, she had tears running down her cheeks. He gently cupped her cheeks in his hands and wiped a tear away with his thumb his own eyes beginning to well-up.

"Hey, keep your chin up eh? I can't have my bestest bud in the whole wide world being sad. We'll be seeing each other for the holidays. You count down the days on your calendar and I'll be home before you know it. I-if you're good, we'll go to that cafe, the one that does your favourite cake. And, you can have as much as you like. What do ya say?"

Marron paused a moment, her green eyes deep in thought. After contemplating Jaune's offer she smiled quizzically.

"As much as I want?"

Jaune chuckled a tear running down his cheek.

"You bet!"

Slowly he pulled his sister into a final hug before letting her go to join their parents. He stayed kneeling as he watched them board the aircraft. The final checks having been carried out, the air crew boarded. The whine of the turbine engines filled the air as the craft pulled away from the docking point and began on its way.

The knight stayed kneeling a good while after the craft had gone. He was pulled from his stupor as a hand softly grasped his shoulder. Looking up he saw his girlfriend and partner.

"Are you OK Jaune?"

The blonde wiped the tears from his face as he stood with his team.

"Y-yeah, I-I'm fine. C'mon, we should go get some food. I'm starving!"

He wrapped his arm around her waist as they slowly began their walk to the campus cafeteria.

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><p>Jaune pushed his food around his plate with his fork, deep in thought and oblivious to the concerned looks on his friends' faces. It wasn't that he wasn't hungry, he was. He just wasn't in the mood to eat. He missed his family already and whilst the Knight knew it would pass it didn't make him feel any better. The Blonde finished his food and stood to leave, returning his tray and empty plates he made his way to the JNPR dorm room.<p>

Classes weren't set to begin for another hour or so, so he lay on his bed and let his mind wander. Primarily he thought of his parents and Marron, a pit of homesickness forming in his stomach. He pushed those thoughts to the very back of his mind, it wouldn't do to lose it now.

He moved over to his team's shared desk. It had four drawers and through mutual agreement each member of JNPR had a drawer. Opening his own Jaune found a small box, he returned over to his bed and opened the box. A smile crossed his face at the sight of its contents, it was a collection of items from throughout his life which meant something to him. He kept this one secret from the others, for fear of the merciless teasing he might receive. He shuddered at the thought of Yang's reaction to it.

He pulled an aged photograph out of the box, the colour within it had faded somewhat but he still loved it all the same. It was of his seven sisters,his parents and a ten year old Jaune. It was from Marron's very first dust-mas and was one of his fondest memories. The whole family looked so happy and carefree.

The rest of his team walked in to find him sat on his bed, knees tucked into his chest utterly absorbed into his own little world and a wide selection of photographs displayed around him. One in particular caught Pyrrha's attention, it was a 10x8 photograph of team JNPR just after the initiation ceremony.

The four teens were bunched together, Nora, grinning joyously was holding the two White Rook pieces that had resulted in their formation, Pyrrha had a mile wide smile, sparkling eyes and an arm around Jaune who was adorned with a children's dress-up crown. Even Ren had an arm round the Valkyrie and a grin on his face in place of his impassive expression. She treasured the memory fondly, she knew they all did.

The Champion strode forward and plucked the photo from his bed.

"Jaune, I think we should frame this one, put it on the wall in here."

The knight was jolted out of his trance and rapidly began to gather the splayed memories into their box again. Content that his most embarrassing childhood photos were locked away safe he returned his attention to his team.

"W-what?"

"I said that we should frame this."

she turned the photograph so that he could see it, his eyes widened in understanding.

"Yeah, I think you're right. We'll get a frame this weekend in Vale."

Pyrrha checked the time on her scroll and her face dropped.

"We're gonna be late for class!"

Seizing Jaune's hand in her own she hauled him to the door and down the hallway, Ren and Nora hot on their tail. Team RWBY watched them go before comprehension, with a look of horror on her face Weiss set off dragging her partner behind her.

"Did she say _late_?!"

In the main courtyard Ozpin stood and watched, an amused smirk hidden behind the rim of his ever present coffee mug.

"Just another day at Beacon."

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><p>The two teams burst through the door to Goodwitch's class without a moment to spare. They stood in the central aisle panting heavily. Goodwitch arrived not seven seconds after them eyeing them with a raised eyebrow and what Jaune could've sworn was an discreet smile.<p>

"Mr. Arc, Miss. Rose. Could you and your teams both be seated?"

The eight teenagers shot to their seats as fast as their exhausted legs could carry them, not wanting to occur the ire of Beacon's infamously strict disciplinarian.

Despite her rather sharp exterior, Goodwitch was undoubtedly one of Vytal's leading experts on the subject of aura and as such her lessons were usually fascinating to Jaune whom had of course only learn of his aura during initiation and had yet to master it. It was largely due to Goodwitch's teachings and of course the practical experience that Pyrrha granted him that Jaune had come along in leaps and bounds since joining Beacon. Truth be told he was immeasurably grateful to the stern blonde lecturer.

Usually, Goodwitch would lecture on an aspect of Aura manipulation for one half of her lesson and then for the second half either allow the students to attempt the new techniques or she would throw them into a sparring situation to force them into using it in a stressful environment. For as she always told them, 'Aura manipulation must be second nature.'

"...And it is through the careful manipulation of aura that one can create weapons in replacement of your own out of your aura should you ever find yourself unarmed or disarmed. Simply focus upon a mental image of the weapon you wish to create and channel your aura into that image, with a bit of luck a physical manifestation of that object should be created. It is often best to start with something familiar. Break down into groups and try it for yourselves, be warned it will take an awful lot of concentration and will not likely come easily to some of you."

Jaune smiled widely, he liked this part of the lessons especially, the opportunity to try his hand at something new. He closed his eyes and fixed an image of his trusty sword Crocea Mors in his mind. The knight took slow and deliberate breaths as he emptied his mind of everything except for the image of the sword. Every detail was clearly presented, every minor dint chip and flaw in the steel all portrayed in perfect clarity.

He held out his hand and drew upon the force of his very soul, his aura. Channelling its energy into his hand he began to impress upon it his mental image of his family's heirloom. His hands began to glow white hot, sweat dripped down his forehead. The blonde snapped his eyes open and glared at his hand, using his sheer force of will he manipulated his energy.

Ren was the first one to complete the task. He gave a satisfied '_Hmph' _as two replicas of his Stormflowers appeared in his hands. The aura weapons had a keener look to them, the blades seeming sharper and glowing a faint magenta. The martial artist didn't seem to have too much difficulty in maintaining the apparitions, to the contrary he seemed almost comfortable. Jaune attributed it to his aura-heavy combat style and his high familiarity with its use.

"Congratulations Master Ren."

Jaune gave a light smile and returned his attentions to his own pursuit. At first nothing happened, the furrow of his brow deepened, but then slowly the air above his open palm grew hazy as gradually the rough silhouette of a longsword formed. He struggled to maintain his concentration as some of the nearby students turned to face him wide-eyed.

With a snarl he pumped more of his aura into the shape as it took shape, filling out steadily until finally in his hand represented a replica of his own weapon. But this ethereal form of Crocea Mors was different somehow, it lacked the dents and impurities of the real thing. Its edge looked far keener and emitted a faint white light. It looked by far a more lethal version, like Crocea Mors was originally, unmarred by generations upon generations of Arcs carrying it into battle.

The knight broke into grin a mile wide at the sight of the spectral blade, his team looked at both him and the sword a mixture between fascination and awe upon their faces.

"Well done Mr Arc! An excellent effort."

Jaune looked up to see the bright green eyes of the professor herself, her face was as stern as ever, but in her eyes the knight saw a rare spark of what looked to be surprise.

Just as soon as it had materialised the sword disappeared, leaving the young swordsman feeling as if he'd just run a mile at full tilt. He heaved a heavy sigh as he wiped his brow free of the accumulated sweat with his sleeve. Content that he had achieved his set goal he eased back into his seat next to Ren, content to watch the efforts of his teammates.

Pyrrha was the next one to achieve her goal. Her own aura Miló materialised over her hand. It too was just like its original counterpart only it was surrounded by a soft crimson atmosphere. She gave her leader a look of joy which he returned with a thumbs-up. The Champion reached out with her free hand and hit the mecha-shift catch. The weapon emitted a brighter burst of light before noiselessly shifting from Xiphos into its javelin form. The Red-head seemed almost surprised at how smooth the action was. After appreciating the spectre for a few moments more she allowed it to fade away and joined her teammates to observe Nora's efforts.

"Miss Nikos, an admirable result, for it to be able to shift forms requires the utmost concentration. Well done."

Goodwitch's voice rang out in praise for the third time, leaving Jaune to chuckle to himself wondering if she was quite alright and hadn't in fact begun to come down with something.

A series of frustrated grunts came from Nora as the Valkyrie struggled to recreate Magnhild. Her usual expression of joviality was long gone. Her tongue poked out from the corner of her mouth, the universal sign of pure concentration and effort. Jaune sighed sympathetically. He knew this kind of task was especially difficult for his hyperactive teammate, she struggled to focus on any one thing for more than a fleeting moment, even if it was her precious warhammer-grenade-launcher.

She was further disrupted by the variety of aura weaponry springing into existence around her as the various other students replicated their equipment. Even Ruby had managed to recreate her 'beloved' Crescent Rose, much to her delight.

"That's it! I'm done!"

The Valkyrie retreated to her seat, a heavy pout on her face. Ren walked over to her and cupped her face in his hands forcing her to look deep into his eyes.

"Nora, I want you to concentrate. Focus on my eyes and nothing else, and regulate your breathing. OK?"

Her usual smile leapt to her face at the contact with her life-long best friend.

"OK Renny!"

She locked his gaze with her own as her expression went blank. They remained locked in what, to any outsider, would appear to be a staring contest. She slowed her breathing down until she was entirely synchronised with her partner. His face softened, making way for a small yet warm smile. Jaune leant forward and observed with a new-found interest. He had never seen the two interact in this manner before

"Very good Nora, Now I want you to think of Magnhild with all your heart."

She nodded and closed her eyes. After what Jaune was sure was a record length of silence from the Valkyrie she spoke. Her voice lacked its hyperactivity and was only just loud enough for him to hear.

"What do I do now Renny?"

"Hold out your hands Nora, and focus. Now direct your aura to your hands and think of Magnhild with all your might."

Nora did as instructed, she held out both her arms dead ahead of her and screwed her face up in concentration. Jaune held his breath as he watched, willing Nora to succeed. A familiar haze appeared above her hands and gradually filled with a light pink energy which manifested into the form of her hammer.

"Open your eyes Nora, have a look."

One of the Valkyrie's cerulean eyes snapped open and she gasped, an expression of pure joy and excitement crossed her face as she beheld the version of Magnhild floating lightly over her hands.

"Renny! We did it!"

Ren chuckled at her exuberance, the hammer dissipated as the Nora shot forward at a speed to rival even Ruby and snatched the martial-artist into one of her signature bear hugs.

"Yes we did."

After a moment or two the shock of impact wore off and he returned her affection. Goodwitch strode over to their group. A the corners of her mouth lifted ever so slightly.

"Very well done Miss Valkyrie! Not only does this show merit to your own character but also that of your teammates. Keep up the good work, all of you."

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><p>The remainder of their lecture was spent trying to repeat the summoning of their aura weaponry. With each subsequent attempt the process became steadily easier, even Nora no longer seemed to struggle with the process. In addition to the decrease in difficulty, the weapons became more refined in shape, the slight haze that originally surrounded the weapons gave way to increased clarity and focus.<p>

The bell rang marking the end of the lecture. And the students hurriedly packed up their notepads and pens before shuffling in line out of the door and off to the canteen for lunch. As Jaune made to follow on from team RWBY he found his path blocked by the riding crop of professor Goodwitch. He stopped dead his team bumping into the back of him.

"The headmaster wishes to speak with your team in his office Mr Arc."

Jaune nodded and led the way through the campus to the familiar grey stone tower that served as both the faculty residence and Ozpin's office. Passing through the foyer they entered the staff elevator and hit the button for the top floor.

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><p>The doors opened to reveal a plush office. It was a relatively large room, hard wood flooring ran up to walls painted a dark green. All along the walls were bookcases chocked full will files on the teams and students of beacon. In the centre of the room resting on a deep rug was Ozpin's desk, and on it a series of files one of which was labelled 'Team Juniper'.<p>

Nora whistled appreciatively.

"This is niiice."

"I'm glad you like it Miss Valkyrie."

The team jumped at the voice and wheeled around to find professor Ozpin. He was wearing his usual green and black suit with his dark green scarf. The professor was leant on his cane holding his Beacon coffee mug in his free hand. A mischievous look was in his eyes. Jaune cleared his throat and stammered.

"Y-you wanted to see us Professor?"

"Yes, indeed I did Mr Arc. I have an assignment for you. Nothing too complicated I'm sure, just a simple Grimm extermination."

The Knight caught the looks of excitement and determination on his teammates' faces, he nodded to the Professor.

"We'll take it."

Ozpin made his way over to his desk and took a seat.

"Very well, I'll have the assignment's dossier sent to your scrolls. You are dismissed."

Team Juniper turned and made for the exit, whispering excitedly to one another.

"Jaune. May I have a moment?"

The blonde stopped at the use of his first name a confused look dominating his features, and turned to face the professor once again. At a signal from Ozpin he took one of the free seats. It was comfortable, not too firm or too soft.

"As this is your first mission Jaune, I wanted to remind you of your responsibility as a team leader. Your team will be relying on you to make critical decisions in the heat of battle, their lives may well depend upon you making the right call. Don't forget that your actions whilst on this assignment will reflect both upon my school and me personally so do us proud and give it your best. I'm confident that you will do just fine. The dossier will be sent to your scroll along with travel arrangements, best of luck. That is all."

Jaune nodded thoughtfully as he considered what the professor had said, he excused himself and entered the elevator. The doors opened to the foyer, he stepped out to find his team waiting for him.

"Well, what did he say to you?"

The champion inquired.

"He just gave me a little advice and wished us luck is all."

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><p>Half way through their packing their scrolls buzzed signifying the arrival of their mission dossier. They all stopped what they were doing and eagerly began to read the details. It was as Ozpin had described, they were tasked with eradicating Grimm which had begun to cause problems for one of the small settlements a few hours north of Vale by Dust-plane accommodation had been arranged with the town's inn. They would be be leaving within the hour. Nora gave a squeal of excitement as she skipped around the room, Ren giving chase and attempting to calm her down. Jaune and Pyrrha both laughed as they continued packing. They had learned from experience just to leave the pair to their antics, it was usually resolved after a couple of minutes.<p>

Jaune led the way down the halls towards their the air station. Rather than the bout of nerves he had expected, the Knight felt calm and collected, he felt eager to finally be out in the field and doing what he had come to Beacon to do, help people.

They bumped into team RWBY along their way.

"Hey Jaune, you guys got your first mission?"

He nodded at the reaper, his warm smile flying to his face.

"We're on our way to our ride out there now."

"You nervous?"

"Nah, not really. Not yet anyway."

"Well good. I'm sure you guys'll be just fine. You've come a long way since initiation."

She lightly clasped his shoulder before letting him go. JNPR set off walking once again, leaving the petite redhead and her team behind them.

"Good luck you guys!"

The reaper called out her final farewell as she watched them go.

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><p>The team arrived airport to find it empty of the usual dust-planes. Jaune looked around the horizon but couldn't see anything. A pit formed in his stomach.<p>

"Maybe we're early?"

He regretted it as soon as he said it. From out of nowhere came the high pitched whine of the turbines as their ride arrived. A look of horror dawned on his face as he took in its appearance. It was an old military drop-ship capable of carrying roughly twelve along with their equipment. Jaune sighed resignedly as he began walking towards it.

_'Well, goodbye lunch. It was nice knowin' ya.'_

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><p><strong>And there it was. Hope you enjoyed it, don't forget to favourite and follow. Review with any critiques and PM me with any plot ideas, all are welcome. I'll be trying to keep updates to at least one a week so until next time, you stay classy!<strong>


	9. All for One, And One for All

**First off a colossal thank-you to everyone that has supported this fic from its founding to the present. Today it passed a milestone 10,000 view! which is truly breathtaking, I've gotta be doing something right eh? On top of that it has a following of over 100 with a favourite total numbering in the 60's. once again I cannot thank you all enough for your support and criticisms. I hope you all enjoy the next chapter.**

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><p>Team JNPR watched with growing fascination and concern as Jaune's face steadily shifted colour, he had worked his way through the spectrum and was currently displaying a tone of green akin to that of his girlfriend's eyes. He had held up relatively well to begin with, but at around ten minutes into their flight he had taken a turn for the worse.<p>

The drop-ship felt as bad as it had looked, the cabin was filled with metallic rattling from the engines and aeronautical equipment as well as the repeated smacking of the spare safety harnesses against their empty chairs. The whole craft shook violently as it flew, so much so that it was a wonder it hadn't shaken itself to a handful of bolts and sheet metal by now. The rushing of wind could be heard loud and clear through the paper thin fuselage but it wasn't quite enough to drown out the labouring turbines that sputtered as though they might cut out any moment.

Pyrrha sighed resignedly, pushing those thoughts out of her head. She ran a hand in wide circles across his back, it was one of the few things that alleviated her partner's airsickness. Though it may not have done much it made her feel better knowing she was doing something. Jaune briefly looked up to her face and smiled meekly before returning casting his gaze back to the compartment floor to glare at one of the rivets.

Ren and Nora sat across from the Champion and her boyfriend and were watching him intently, neither making a sound, which was especially odd for the Valkyrie. Pyrrha eyed them suspiciously and succeeding in catching Ren's eye. She shot him a curious look to which he shrugged and returned to his 'JauneWatch'.

_'He's up to something...they both are...'_

The red-head's thoughts were interrupted as her boyfriend flailed out for his paper airsickness bag. Having retrieved it he brought it up so it was covering his mouth and nose, after his previous experiences he had learned a valuable lesson.

_'Who'd have known you can hurl chunks out of the nose? That air-hostess looked set to kill me.'_

He shuddered and repressed the memory once again as fresh waves of nausea flowed throughout his body. He inhaled deeply through the bag doing everything he could to rein-in his unruly body.

Across from him Ren and Nora were watching with renewed interest. He paid them no mind, pouring his full concentration into his internal fight. He felt it coming, in a last ditch effort he focused his aura into his stomach in an effort to stop it from churning. His attempt was futile.

Pyrrha winced empathetically as her boyfriend played meet-and-greet at the reunion for his breakfast. She heard hushed laughter and cast a look up, to her horror it emanated from the other half of her team. Ren retrieved his scroll a slight frown on his face and checked the time. To the Champion's surprise he produced a small roll of Lien, peeling off a few of the notes he handed them over to his childhood friend who held the notes up and kissed them in victory.

"You win this time." The martial-artist nearly shouted to be heard over the cacophony of the aircraft.

"If he'd have gone just thirty seconds earlier id have had it!"

Ren turned his attention back to Jaune but was caught midway by a scathing glare from Pyrrha. Her eyes were full of malice. The Lotus shrivelled under her gaze and retreated as far into his seat as he could, offering a nervous smile.

"You two bet on Jaune being sick?!" she yelled, struggling to be heard over the noise.

"K-kinda, well, not so much on him _being_ sick as _when_ he was sick."

"How could you? Jaune is our leader, our friend!"

"P-Pyrrha, it's OK. Calm down, it was just some harmless fun." Jaune's voice proclaimed weakly, just being heard over the drop-ship.

The team turned in surprise. The knight still looked like death on a hell hot-plate but his face had turned a more...earthly colour. The knight gave his best rendition of a smile but ending up wincing as the craft hit a particularly brutal patch of turbulence. After the shaking had reduced back to its base level he looked back at NR.

"S-so who won? I didn't quite catch it."

Ren shifted uncomfortably, regretting his actions more and more with each passing moment. Pyrrha was right, Jaune was more than their leader. He was their friend.

"U-um, it was Nora. She bet it would take you a half-hour before you broke I said twenty minutes. She was closer. I would have had it I think but Pyrrha rubbing your back worked wonders."

Ren's guilt lifted temporarily as Jaune chuckled. He looked Ren in the eye, a wide smile on his face, it was genuine and Ren saw his friend bore him no ill will.

"I think that's a new record, eh Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha's laughed at her boyfriend's jest just as the final tinges of red from Ren's comments disappeared from her face. She was soon joined by the rest of her team, they laughed until tears streamed down their face, only stopping as they hit more turbulence and had to cling on for dear life.

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><p>After a further painfully slow three hours and fifty-five minutes, during which Jaune heaved a great many more times until it felt as though he was an inch away from his stomach imploding, their drop-ship finally touched down on the solid ground again.<p>

The moment it impacted Jaune had heaved the steel door aside and flung himself out onto the ground, he lay there for a good five minutes, splayed out hugging the ground.

"I love you ground, I swear I'll never leave you again! Take me back?"

The remainder of team JNPR laughed as they unloaded their kit and listened to their goofball leader gush to the planet itself for a further five minutes. Once he was done he stood up and dusted himself off. He retrieved his bag from beside his girlfriend and slung it over his shoulder. Wrapping an arm around his partner he glanced at his surroundings.

The drop-ship had touched down in a clearing in a pine wood. The floor was carpeted in a thick mat of needles, the occasional tree lay fallen. It was silent save for the now low hum of the drop-ship's turbine engines.

"I've had to drop you here, landing spots are scarce in these parts. The Town is that way."

The pilot motioned along a small trail as he explained their situation. Once content that his message was understood he powered up the craft and took off once again angling low over the treetops and shooting off back the way it had come.

Jaune wrapped an arm around his partner's waist and motioned towards the trail.

"Well guys, I guess we had better start walking. Be on your guard."

Ren and Nora led the way followed by Pyrrha and Jaune. They walked on in silence, any attempts at conversation had soon fizzled out in the dead silence in between the pine trees. It was an unnatural still, no birds could be seen. A sense of unease befell the members of team Juniper yet still they pressed on.

After what seemed an eternity the team caught sight of buildings ahead, they rushed forward with renewed vigour and emerged into another clearing, this one far larger than that which they had landed in. The town lay nestled in the middle and looked a little worse for wear.

The town was composed of a series of log cabins arrayed in a circle. In the centre stood the town hall, the only stone building in sight. It had a large square tower equipped with a single large iron wrought clock.

The cabins had bore the scars of the recent Grimm problems, many having huge claw marks gouged out of their sides, or indeed entire walls shattered into splinters. Around the very edge of the town were dug a series of ditches in which were stood row upon row of sharpened stakes, many were coated in the black blood of the Grimm. Although the stakes wouldn't do much good against the larger variations of monster like Ursai or Death-stalkers they had seemingly been effective against Boarbatusks and Beowolves.

Jaune released his partner and drew Crocea Mors, his team following suit. His sword gleamed in the rays of the dying sun. He edged forward slowly, signalling for the others to form around him. He led the way, sword drawn and shield held out in front of him. Behind him came Ren and Nora each covering their respective flank, and finally came Pyrrha. The Spartan mirrored her leader holding her shield up to defend their back. It was in this formation that they entered the town.

Not a single window in the town was intact, shards of glass littered the ground, cracking and snapping under their feet. Jaune sighed at seeing the levels of destruction and damage, it wasn't hard to see that the town must have been pleasant before the Grimm attacks began. They entered the little square in the town's centre, it was an open space in front of the town hall. Its edges were lined with quaint little shops, their hanging signs still swinging in the slight breeze and their windows smashed, the little displays utterly destroyed. The middle of the square was divided up into four quadrants. In the centre was what they assumed had been a stone fountain, it was now only a muddy puddle in the midst of crushed masonry. Around the fountain were once well tended flowerbeds, the ground was churned up and the tattered remains of the flora lay scattered about.

Brushing aside their growing rage at the destruction around them they pushed on up to the town hall itself. At a quick glance they noticed a difference, the windows whilst still smashed had been boarded up. The Knight slowly climbed the white steps of the town hall, either side of him the colossal pillars stood bright and defiant against all else. Jaune paused in his climb at the sound of trickling water and soft splashes. He cast his gaze down to find that he was stood in a puddle, only it wasn't water. It was blood, human blood.

Jaune turned to his team and gave them a look of horror. He frantically hurdled up the remaining steps three and a time and sprinted over to the heavy yet ornate wooden doors. They were scratched to hell, chipped and dented from the relentless onslaught of some monster of extra-ordinary size. He pounded his fist against them in the vain hope that someone was still alive inside.

"I don't like this. Whatever did this wasn't a Grimm of ordinary size. Look at those claw marks!"

From behind the door came sounds of movement, the hunters and huntresses dropped into their 'ready' stance and crowded into an all-round defence in preparation for what they were convinced would be a horde of Grimm. The doors to the town hall slid open ever so slightly to reveal an haggard old face, it lit up as he looked at the four. Without saying a word he swung the doors open and motioned for them to get inside.

"Quickly! Quickly!" The old man hissed, his eyes frantically scanning the town around them, and hurriedly closed them in.

* * *

><p>The first thing to hit Pyrrha was the smell, the interior of the hall absolutely reeked of a mixture of death and squalor. The hall was once a grand building judging from the ornate painted ceilings and marble floors, but its former glory was now just a distant memory. The once polished marble was besmirched with filth leaving a tainted version behind. She lamented the once great building's fall into disrepair.<p>

"What are you kids doing out there?! It's not safe to be outside!"

The team turned their attention to the old man. His face was craggy and pockmarked, it was clear he had lived a hard life. His clothes were torn and hung loosely about his frame, there was practically nothing of him. The champion noticed with slight shock that his left arm ended abruptly just above where his elbow should have been, it was a recent wound and was wrapped in rough bandages dyed red with gore.

"We were sent here to deal with the Grimm infestation. We're team Juniper from Beacon academy, and if I may ask, who are you?" Jaune spoke with a sense of calm authority.

"I'm Merlyn, I was the town's blacksmith and let me tell ye boy, this ain't your average Grimm problem. Come with me."

The old man led them through the large foyer and up to the higher floors via a series of winding staircases. At last he led them down a long hall and stopped in front of one of the doors. It opened to show a sight that would haunt them all for the remainder of their lives.

The room was massive, one of the elaborate meeting rooms used by the town's mayor for the press releases or open court days on which he addressed the townsfolk and their various issues. Now it was dimly lit with the large oak table shoved off to one side, the chairs all stacked haphazardly on top of it.

Yet the most disturbing thing within the dimly lit meeting room was what seemed to be hundreds of pairs of eyes, gleaming as they reflected what little light was available. Their owners cowered slightly at the sight of the new-comers as they all turned to face them, some with glares of anger and others with glimpses of hope. One of the corners had been cleared out and now served as a small scale makeshift hospital, a number of patients ranging in age from children through to the elderly were laid out on whatever soft materials could be gathered.

Around the room the occasional weapon could be seen indicating a member of the town guard, whilst not as proficient as qualified huntsmen and huntresses these bold men and women served as resident defenders from the creatures of Grimm. It is only once these fighters are outmatched that the hunters are called in. The guards themselves looked worse for wear, many had bandages wrapped around them and a couple had makeshift splints around their limbs.

It was a truly depressed atmosphere, very few of those present had any sign of hope within themselves, their eyes were dark and anger filled. These were people who had little to lose.

"W-what _happened_ here?" Jaune stammered the question that was on the minds of his whole team.

"That would be ol' Ursula..." Merlyn replied, his voice was full of sorrow.

"Ursula?" all four members of JNPR spoke at once, confused glances on their faces.

"Yep. She's a big bugger. An Ursa Major, last time we saw 'er she were the size of an 'ouse"

The four teenagers shivered at the idea.

"She came along bout two weeks ago and well, you've seen the state of the town."

"W-well, we were sent here to do a job... W-what c-can you tell us about...um... 'Ursula'..."

Jaune stammered, his previous air of confidence now diminished in the face of their somewhat daunting task.

* * *

><p>The team spent the next two hours discussing 'Ursula' and her strengths and weaknesses along with Jaune contemplating the various tactics that he and his team could employ to bring the monster down. Jaune racked his brain, sifting through his memories of Professor Port's lectures for any hints or tips for bringing down Mega-Grimm.<p>

_"_-_And so young hunters and huntresses, as my dashing younger self looked the Mega-Grimm square in its eyes I felt no fear. For all Grimm of such sheer size have one weakness in common. They are slow. This doesn't mean however that they are easy foes to fell, far from it, for they are tenacious creatures. If you ever face these beasts and I wish that none of you ever will; plan your strategy, attack as one for you will need every member of your respective teams if you should have any hope of success."_

Their Grimm-studies lecturer had painted a dark picture, but Jaune knew he was right. Though it may have seemed it, their task wasn't impossible. But one thing was for certain it would be the most difficult they had ever attempted.

The old man led them down the hall and into an empty room, it was an old office judging by the single mahogany desk in the centre but would serve nicely as their quarters and base of operations. They each dumped their kit-bags and set about clearing floor space, laying out their roll-mats and survival bags. Ren and Nora lay theirs out together just under the desk whilst Jaune and Pyrrha both opted for the corner.

"It ain't much, but it should be comfortable enough. Sorry we can't offer yer any better."

"This shall do nicely, thank-you for your hospitality."

Reaching into his rucksack Jaune retrieved a large bar of chocolate he had packed planning to split a piece with his team each night of their mission and handed it over to the aged smith.

"H-here, divide this up between yourselves, I have a feeling it will be better appreciated over with you guys."

Merlyn gave them a smile, his eyes glistening with a film of tears.

"Thank'ee, the kiddies'll love this."

he bid them a goodnight and left them in silence closing the door behind him. The team collapsed on their meagre bedding and sat in silence. From the room next door they heard quiet cheers and gasps of appreciation and shock as Jaune's gift was seemingly shared out amongst the survivors and smiled widely.

"You did a good thing Jaune. Even by such a small act you have made a bigger impact than you know."

It was Ren's voice that rang out in the darkness, his tone appeared to contain a slight trace of admiration for his leader. With his comment the team shuffled about uncomfortably and settled into their survival bags. In the darkness Jaune sat with his back against his rucksack, his partner huddled up against him, the contours of her body fitting perfectly with his own. She nuzzled into him and rested her head on his chest.

Before long Pyrrha was snoring softly, Ren and Nora's breathing had become almost inaudible, but Jaune sat wide awake. He couldn't empty his mind, thoughts of their upcoming battle haunted him and made his gut wrench through fear and anxiety.

_'It's not just my team counting on me now, it's this whole town down to the last child.'_

His girlfriend stirred against him, and in the pitch black of the room she whispered to him. Her voice calm and soft, it served to both calm him and soothe his nerves.

"Jaune, is everything alright?"

He hung his head and for a moment was silent as he contemplated pouring his heart out.

"No, I'm not ready for this. You saw those people in there, they're relying on us to fix this."

"And we shall, do you remember why you chose to become a hunter Jaune?"

"Y-yeah, I wanted to be like the heroes in the story books..."

"And that is why we're here right now. These people need our help, and you're their Knight in shining armour."

"B-but what if I'm not strong enough?"

She reached up and kissed him ever so sweetly causing warmth to flow from his lips and ease the knot in his stomach.

"You will be, and you have us there fighting alongside you. Just remember Jaune, you're braver than you believe and stronger than you seem."

The knight leant in and kissed her before resting his chin upon the top of her head. He drew her in to a tight hug as they sat there defiant against the world.

"She's right you know. If anyone can lead a team to victory against a Mega-Grimm it'd be you. You have a knack for these things. It's in your blood."

"R-Ren? How long have you been awake?"

The Blonde stammered in his surprise, having thought the martial-artist to be asleep. He could feel his cheeks burning red and was grateful for the cover of darkness.

"I couldn't sleep." came the stoic's explanation.

"Me either!" Nora whined.

"I think we have all been having the same thoughts, but we mustn't forget, this is why we came to Beacon to begin with, to help those who cannot help themselves. And though it seems tough sometimes we must push on through the fear and doubt if we truly wish to be great huntsmen and huntresses, and we will do it together as one."

Ren's words had a profound impact upon his three teammates. Even Nora paused in thought. Her partner was right after all, they had enrolled into Beacon academy with the hopes of helping people and it wouldn't do to back out now just because of a little Mega-Grimm. Content that he had said his peace he settled back into his sleeping bag and drew his childhood friend in closer, an arm wrapped around her shoulders as much for her benefit as his own. Pyrrha also resettled into her position although Ren's words still danced behind her eyes.

Jaune mulled the martial-artist's words over in his mind, his friend was right, a voice of reason to his clouded thoughts. He considered their situation and considered their possible solutions. 'Ursula' had to die, there was no room for doubt there. The issue that he was faced with was exactly how he planned to achieve his goal.

He kicked his tactical brain into gear considering all his options and available resources. The town itself was likely devoid of anything too useful give the path of destruction. Jaune dismissed the town's guard as being of any help, they had been thoroughly trashed already.

Finally he considered the town's layout itself, the town hall served as the focal point in the centre of the settlement, around it were built the log cabins. The rooftops of these cabins would provide an excellent method of manoeuvring about the town, however their angled nature could make them treacherous to use in a combat situation.

_'No'_ he mused_ 'Our best chance is to out manoeuvre it, we can use the little alleys and side streets in a hit and run pattern to gradually wear it down.'_

A smile grew across his face as his plan at last began to take shape. It wasn't perfect and he still had to account for its contingencies, but it was a start and a start was what they needed. The Knight settled in against the wall and drew his girlfriend in close as he closed his eyes allowing his pent up fatigue to wash over him, one last thought crossed his mind before he slipped into his dreams.

_'We're coming for you "Ursula".'_

* * *

><p><strong>This is basically a bit of a build up for what i hope will be an exciting couple of chapters although i wasn't exactly happy with it. please feel free to follow, favourite and review as well as PM me any plot ideas. I'm thinking of starting another Jaune pairing fic on the side, so ill run a bit of a poll, PM me with the ships you would like to see and after 3 chapters of the 'Sword and Spear' i'll follow your decisions. <strong>

**Thank you all once again for your support and for reading, i hope you enjoyed reading it as much as i did writing it. I'll see you all next time!**


	10. Grimm Jam

**Here it is, the longest chapter yet. I'm a little nervous about this one, not entirely sure it's up to scratch. But i digress, i hope you enjoy it all the same.**

* * *

><p>Jaune was awake long before any of his teammates, he had work to do. Slowly and with painstaking care so as not to wake her, he extricated himself from underneath her and repositioned the red-head so that he might be comfortable. Content that he was now free he made is way over to the desk and set his scroll upon it. He typed in a few figures and the device displayed a like-for-like representation of the town he was in, he scrolled through the map getting committing every detail to memory.<p>

The minutes slowly crept by as he stared at the map doing his very best to remember as many details as was possible. His plan relied solely on his team's ability to out-manoeuvre 'Ursula' at every opportunity. As he worked he way through the town's planning he drew together a strategy for how he and the rest of team Juniper might be able to bring down the Mega-Grimm.

The Knight gave a satisfied sigh as he at last shut down the map on his scroll contented that he could effectively recall his mental map no matter what. His scroll reverted back to its home screen displaying a photograph of Jaune and Pyrrha together. Pyrrha had a dab of ice cream on her nose and was blushing feverish red. Next to her the blonde was giving a cheesy grin as he reached out with his free arm to take the picture.

He smiled recalling the events, it had been from their second date. Jaune had taken her to a quaint little ice cream parlour in Vale, he could still remember the smell of the different flavours. He had waited until she had gone to taste her's before tapping the bottom of her hand resulting in her cone shooting up and dabbing her nose. He had snapped the photo before she knew what had happened.

* * *

><p>Jaune sat quietly watching the sun rise through the gaps in the boarded up windows as he waited for his team to stir from their respective dreams. He didn't want to wake them, they were shattered from their flight the previous day. They deserved the rest.<p>

A single beam of sunlight came through a gap in the hastily boarded window. Jaune's eyes traced it to find it illuminating his partners face. He gasped at the sight. Her vibrant hair seemed to glow in the early morning light, illuminating her corner. In response to the sudden light she opened her eyes, they became an iridescent wash of every imaginable shade of green. He tried not to stare but whenever he tried to avert his gaze his eyes were drawn back.

The Champion had an adorable look of confusion on her face as she noticed Jaune was missing. She cast her eyes searchingly around the room, they locked onto her leader. The blonde watched as his partner shimmied out of her sleeping bag and made her way over to him, straightening her clothes out as she went.

"You been awake long?" she inquired, clearing the sleep from her eyes and suppressing a yawn.

"A couple of hours, I've been busy" he replied.

"Doing what?" she slumped down next to him

"Planning. I have an idea about how we can deal with 'Ursula', but I'd rather wait until the others are awake so I can tell you all at once." He smiled warmly and wrapped an arm around her, lightly kissing her head

The pair sat in companionable silence, each content to simply be in the other's presence. Jaune heard a soft sobbing, he turned and was surprised to find that it was Pyrrha. He gave her a reassuring squeeze and drew her in rocking slowly back and forth in an effort to soothe her.

Pyrrha internally berated herself for her lapse in control, she had accidentally opened a floodgate of emotions and there was no way she could shut it off now. She leant into her boyfriend and cried silently.

"Hey now, Pyrrha, what's wrong?" He rubbed her arm as he spoke in a soft voice.

She pulled away slightly, her eyes glistening with tears, some of which had escaped and were in a mad dash down her cheeks.

"I-I'm scared Jaune. All throughout my life I've embraced combat challenges willingly and with no real fear, sure I was nervous but never afraid. My parents always saw me as the champion and never just Pyrrha their daughter. It was a cold and harsh existence but I came to Beacon, then I met _you_. Our team became the loving family I had never truly had. For once it felt as though people truly cared about me for who and not what I am. And then I felt something for you, it was a totally new experience for me. Love."

The champion caught his shocked expression.

"That's right Jaune, I _love _you. You were the first person to ever treat me like just another human being. It wasn't for nothing that I pinned you to that tree during initiation. And now here we are about to face off against some titanic hell beast and I'm scared. I had a nightmare last night that Nora, Ren and you all got killed by this Ursa and it wouldn't stop. I couldn't bare the idea of losing you."

The Champion was shaking in his arms. In the most gentle of motions he swept a curtain of her red hair out of her eyes and caught her tears with a thumb. He cupped her cheek in one hand and gave her his famous Arc smile. The Spartan sniffed softly and stared straight back into his eyes, their swirling depths had an almost hypnotic affect and helped calm her nerves.

"Pyrrha,I didn't know you felt so worried, you don't need to y'know? We can't back out now, we have an obligation to help these people but I promise you one thing. We will kill this 'thing' and we will all go home together. And what's more, when we do I'm taking you back to that ice cream parlour for the biggest sundae of your life!"

She smiled slightly and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, he leaned in and kissed her most sweetly upon the lips, their moment was interrupted by the ferocious sounding growl of Jaune's stomach. The knight scratched the back of his head nervously as his face turned red. Pyrrha giggled at the sound.

"S-sorry. How bout I set about making us breakfast?"

"Did someone say 'breakfast'?" Nora sat bolt upright faster than Jaune could blink.

"Yes Nora, Jaune is just about to start making it. You'd best wake up Ren, we have a big day ahead and much to discuss."

The Valkyrie nodded with enthusiasm and went about waking her partner up, a process that involved her prodding him repeatedly in the face until he sat up groaning.

* * *

><p>Their rations sat in their small camping stove and bubbled away animatedly, despite Jaune adding a few sprigs from his personal supply of seasoning ingredients. Despite his efforts their rations looked far from appetising, but what could you expect of something that had come out of a bag. All they knew was that it contained all the energy they would need.<p>

They all sat around their small stove eyeing the orange mush they had been served, it was labelled as a carrot and coriander stew but that was optimistic at best. No-one made a move to start eating, instead they all just glanced between their teammates and their 'food'. Jaune was the first to attempt eating.

"Well, down the hatch..." He loaded up his spoon and took a mouthful of the broth, all eyes were on him as he sampled the cuisine. His face lit up at the explosion of flavours across his palate. And began to eat with ferocious speed.

"Mmm! Guys, this is good! It tastes far better than it looks. Eat up!"

The rest of his team took tentative tastes of their ration breakfast and reacted much the same as their leader, wolfing down the food with the speed of a charging Boarbatusk. The kitchen staff at Beacon had worked a miracle, packing mountains of flavour into what could only be described as slop.

* * *

><p>Not long after they had eaten, they prepared themselves. Jaune straightened out his trusty hoodie and slung on his armour and belted Crocea Mors around his waist. He undid and re-tightened his laces ensuring they were tight and that the excess wouldn't cause problems for him.<p>

Across from him Pyrrha smiled in recognition at the hoodie. Whilst he was straightening its hood she noticed a ragged fist-sized hole torn into the fabric. It was the same one he had worn for initiation, the one he referred to as his 'lucky' hoodie. The red-head busied herself in pulling on her leg plates and straightening out her combat clothes, finally with gentle precision she placed her simple golden circlet upon her head. She slung Miló and Akoúo̱ into their usual place across her back where she could reach them. Content that she was ready for their upcoming battle the Champion began to pack her sleeping bag away.

Ren unclipped the magazines from his Storm checking that the dust-rounds were lined up correctly to reduce the probability of a jam. Content that they were in order he slid them back into his twin pistols and pulled the slider back to chamber the first rounds, he double checked the safety catches as was good practice and concealed them within his voluminous sleeves.

Nora was the odd one out, rather than carefully checking her weapon and preparing herself, she was sat cross legged surrounded by small cases of her custom grenades, each one was marked with a squiggle of a different colour. The Valkyrie sat resting her chin on her hand pensively muttering to herself.

"-But red would be prettier... hmm... what about the firework rounds? Noo, they're purely for show... The usual pink might work, no...this is a massive Grimm, it needs something special... AHA!"

Nora's hand darted out and grasped one of the high-explosive cannisters from its foam case, she turned it over in her hands and nodded decisively loading her revolving grenade launcher and humming all the while. Looking up she caught her team staring at her wide-eyed in response she simply waggled one of the grenades and chirped out;

"PURPLE!"

All four teens burst into laughter at their exuberant Valkyrie comrade. Not one of them would substitute her for the world. Just as Ren was the voice of reason, Nora was their innocence and freedom of spirit, Jaune and Pyrrha were simply the bread and butter to complete the package and hold it all together.

Once they were all prepared Jaune had them all gather round the desk, again he lay out his scroll and activated the map display hologram. They each watched him intently, even Nora was stood stock-still.

"OK guys, here's the plan."

* * *

><p>It had taken the Knight a full hour to explain his strategy to them, and even longer to answer their questions. It had frustrated him at first but he knew it was necessary, better that they understand the idea fully than not and risk harm. He had pointed out using his map the manner in which the streets were organised and how, if necessary, they could use them to their advantage in the upcoming battle.<p>

"Remember, if you find yourself in trouble travel at right angles and turn as often as possible. Most likely 'Ursula' won't be able to follow you. Stick to the plan and with any luck this monster will be dead by dinner."

He led his team out of their accommodation and down the hall to the refugee room from the previous night. There inside they found the townsfolk, although they seemed a little friendlier than they had. Jaune scanned the room looking for the old smith from the night before, he spied him over in the makeshift field hospital helping to tend the wounded.

He set his face into an expression of grim determination and made is way over to him and tapped him on the shoulder. Merlyn turned briefly and grunted at the sight of the four teenagers.

"Can I 'elp you youngsters?" His voice gravelly as ever.

"We are all set to deal with this 'Ursula', would you mind leading us to the exit. We kinda don't know the way out."

The room went deathly silent, all eyes on team Juniper. Merlyn motioned for them to follow and made his way through the crowd of refugees and off towards the door, JNPR following close behind. As they made their way past the survivors they murmured offers of 'good luck' and 'God speed' . In one particular instance Jaune was stopped by a small child no taller than his waist, it was a girl who couldn't have been any older than maybe seven. She was what was once a yellow summer dress from what he could tell, her eyes were an odd colour in between green and yellow. Her hair shone silver In what light there was, she was adorable.

"Good luck out there Mister. Thank-you for the chocolate. Don't let the mean old monster get you."

"Not on your life, we'll get 'em I promise."

He smiled his warmest smile and lightly ruffled her hair. He turned and followed Merlyn out of the door and into the halls. The little girl's speech bolstered his courage for she reminded the Knight of his own sister. Marron was around the same age and they both had a look of hope in their eyes. He would do his best for that girl, for all of the townsfolk.

* * *

><p>Their little procession halted in the once-great foyer. Merlyn stood in front of them and looked them all up and down, scrutinizing each and every detail of the team before him. He seemed to pay particular attention to their blonde leader whom was stood his jaw set and a fire burning in his eyes. After a good five minutes the smith finished his inspection and spoke, his eyes filled with sorrow.<p>

"Good luck to you all, each and every one o' ya is far braver than I. We'll all be rooting for you. Be sure to give ol' Ursula one from me! An' then several more fer good measure." Rage burned in the old man's eyes as he spoke.

"Yes sir!" they all replied in unison.

Merlyn simply nodded and hefted the door open just wide enough for them to slip through. Team Juniper took a few deep steadying breaths and stepped out into the bright light of the outside world.

They blinked profusely trying to speed up their eyes' adjustment to the burning August sun. Gradually it became more than a bright white blur and they could distinguish the shapes of nearby buildings. What bothered them was the lack of Grimm, the town still seemed totally deserted. Jaune took a few steps into the square and looked a Nora a mischievous look in his eyes, matched only by the Valkyrie

"Nora, light show."

Nora giggled as she locked a special cartridge into Magnhild and aimed it up, she pulled the trigger sending her projectile whistling on its way above them. It reached the height of its arc and exploded into seven micro-cannisters which spread out before each exploded individually sending showers of multi coloured sparks, ranging from bright greens to deep purples, raining down on the town square.

The sound of the explosions died down and all was still once again, briefly. From off in the distance came a roar which chilled the blood in their veins. They felt a low rumbling and saw off in the distance the tops of the trees flex out of the way as their quarry came hurtling towards them amidst the sounds of creaking and cracking wood.

They adopted their respective stances and prepared themselves. Nora shifted Magnhild into its hammer form, the colossal weapon providing some comfort to the team. They had yet to see any Grimm go head-to-head with the hammer for more than three swings and live. Many of the creatures in Beacon's emerald forest ran scared at its sight, not that they ever got far, Nora would always chase them down in the end and convert their once solid bodies into a substance that she lovingly called 'Grimm Jam'.

* * *

><p>They watched in a mixture of fascination and horror as the flexing trees got closer and closer. Jaune tightened his grip on his sword and shield, he shot reassuring glances to his teammates. With the exception of Nora who seemed genuinely excited, they all had a sombre yet determined look to them.<p>

Another deafening roar sounded as the beast burst into the clearing and made a beeline directly for the teenagers. Merlyn hadn't exaggerated, Ursula was _huge_, roughly the size of one of the smaller log houses. The plates of bone armour were chipped and gouged, a particularly deep set of claw marks marred its face-plate. The spikes on its back were colossal ranging from four feet long at their smallest up to around twelve feet at their biggest.

"Holy shi-"

He was cut short by the sound of splintering wood as the Ursa Major swiped a powerful paw straight through the side of a cabin blocking its way.

"RUN!"

He barked his command and sped off at fill tilt to the nearest cross-roads, it was a small area just big enough to house the Ursa. He shot a quick glance behind to find his team hot on his heels and behind them their monstrous foe. The ground shook with every step it took, and the stone paving cracked under its feet.

"BREAK!"

Once more the Knight's voice rang forth,struggling to be heard over the sound of the Mega-Grimm chasing after them. His message was received and his team split up each taking a different direction on the cross-roads. As hoped Ursula came to a stop in the centre, baring its teeth in a feral growl.

"PYRRHA! DISTRACTION!"

He heard his partner grunt behind the massive beast, and caught a brief glimpse of gold as Akoúo̱ collided with, and ricocheted off of the Ursa's skull armouring with a deafening clang. Ursula released another earth shattering roar and reared up turning to face the Champion. Pyrrha retrieved her shield via her semblance and prepared to defend herself. The Ursa towards her and sent a series of heavy swipes, The Spartan's aura flared as one of the paws impacted sending her sprawling. Concern swept through Jaune as he watched her regain her feet and swipe Miló at the inbound claws of the Ursa.

"NORA! DO IT!" He yelled.

In a flash of orange and hyperactivity he watched the Valkyrie dart forward, in its rage the gargantuan Ursa missed her dart forwards, missed her raise her hammer... Once, the beast howled in pain. Twice, it attempted to turn on the Valkyrie. Thrice, a loud explosion was followed by a resounding and sickening crack as she. Broke. Its. Leg.

Ursula let loose a piercing screech in pain as its left leg crumbled beneath it, folding in a way that it was never designed to. It felt as though the whole world shook as Ursula hit the deck, shattering the paving slabs on impact and leaving a sizeable crater. He winced almost empathetically, as Nora finished her job and shattered its remaining knee. The fight was far from over, but if anything was certain it was that Ursula would never be getting back up.

The Valkyrie surveyed her work with a savage smile as she retreated over to Jaune, the Ursa having blocked off her original street. She had a slight spattering of gore on her face only serving to accentuate her savage grin.

"YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW LONG IVE WANTED TO DO THAT!"

The hammer wielder shouted over the pained screams of the now crippled Ursa Major.

"WELL DONE! WE'RE NOT DONE YET! THAT THING STILL HAS CLAWS!"

And it was true, even as he spoke the beast was flailing wildly tearing swathes out of the nearby buildings with powerful strokes of its claws.

"PYRRHA, PIN DOWN ITS RIGHT PAW!"

The Champion drew her arm back switching Miló from its Xiphos form into its javelin and threw it with all her might, complimenting her throw with the recoil from one of her dust-rounds. It flew straight and true, but in its process of flailing the Ursa flung its right paw out and swatted the spear out of the air and sent it shooting into the wall of one of the nearby houses. She flared her aura and activated her semblance but the spear was truly stuck.

With a grunt the Spartan sprinted towards her prized weapon, ducking and leaping to avoid the furious onslaught of the utterly furious, although now paraplegic Ursa. Using her momentum she threw herself at the cabin, planting her feet on the wall and securing a sturdy grip on the half of Miló. Straightening her legs and giving a powerful heave the spear's blade came free in a shower of splinters.

Rage burned in her eyes as once again Miló took on its Xiphos form. Raising her shield she charged the downed beasts arm, Ursula saw her coming and launched a swipe. The Champion caught the blow on her shield and was knocked back to the ground. She flipped to her feet and charged the beast again, Ursula howled as a barrage of green bullets flew into the armour plating around its eyes temporarily blinding it, Off in the distance she watched as Ren unloaded both clips towards the beast's face.

Taking a leaf from Ren's book Jaune charged the Ursa's flank bringing his sword in a sweeping arc and rending the monsters flesh. Again and again he swung loosing jets of blood from the beast's hide. Each swing sent a shower of droplets flying from his blade.

Pyrrha saw her opening and leapt up onto the beasts arm, stabbing Miló deep into its flesh to gain hold and grabbing a handful of black fur with her free hand. The Champion worked her way up the beasts flailing arm in this manner until she reached its shoulder, there she set to work hacking and slashing at the joint, aiming to sever as many tendons as possible. Her savage attack sent sprays of pitch black blood flying, marring both her armour and the street around them. With each swing she felt the arms movement reduce ever so slightly, until eventually it ceased to move at all, the shoulder joint in tatters a river of gore pouring out and pooling on the cold stone below. She leapt down and ran to her leader, drenched in blood and sweat.

Across from her Ren made his move, covered by a volley of grenades from a certain hyperactive Valkyrie. Clouds of bright purple smoke engulfed Ursula's head as it flailed its one remaining arm in an attempt to cease the explosive barrage.

"REN YOUR TURN!" Jaune barked his commands.

Employing a similar technique to his teammate the martial-artist used the twin blades of Stormflower as mobile hand holds, stabbing them alternately to climb his way up. He was swung about like a rag doll as he poured his aura into his hands to sustain his grip. Once at the beast's shoulder he swung his fist, glowing magenta, into one of the many bone spines on the beasts back. It snapped launching the great spike into the air. The Lotus leapt and angled himself above it, in an act of pure grace he swung his foot around in a wide kick, it flashed as he connected one of his famed aura-strikes with the bone spike launching it as supersonic speed. A loud boom echoed as it broke the sound-barrier. It flew straight into the beasts shoulder and embedded itself. Ren landed in a three point pose and made his way over to his leader. The beast threw a clawed swipe at the martial-artist. Ren tried to dodge but was too slow, it connected with a dull thud and sent him through the wall of a nearby house.

"RENNY NO!"

Nora gave an anguished cry as she saw her teammate fly.

Jaune sprinted over to where his teammate had landed. He found him against the wall, even as he watched the Lotus staggered to his feet and made his way towards him. His clothes were tattered and torn, as well as his arms being covered in a wide collection of small cuts and grazes. From outside came a series of explosions as Nora vented her rage and unleashed a multi coloured hell onto the downed Ursa.

"Ren! Are you alright?"

The martial-artist nodded shakily, as he checked himself over.

"Nothing broken, but my aura is all but gone."

The Knight followed his friend as they made their way back out and into the fray. At the sight of her childhood friend alive and unharmed Nora ceased her barrage and sprinted over drawing him into one of her signature bear-hugs.

"RENNY! ARE YOU OK? DON'T YOU EVER SCARE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN!"

The Lotus boy chuckled and raised a hand to her signalling his wish to speak, the Valkyrie paused and looked to him expectantly.

"Nora, I'm fine. I'm a little shaken up but I'm OK. Now about that beast's arm."

With a cocky smirk, Ren raised his left hand and snapped his fingers. Ursula's remaining arm swelled at the shoulder joint around the wound and, with a sickening squelch exploded in a shower of blood and bone fragments as the aura charged spike exploded. The beast gave a howl that shattered the remaining shards of glass within the windows of the nearby buildings. The four teenagers covered their ears at the harsh sound.

"I swear Ren, when we get back to Beacon you're so teaching me how to do that." Jaune spoke in reverence as Ursula finally fell oddly quiet. Cautiously the team made their way over to the creatures head, skirting the ever growing pool of pitch black blood. Its eyes glowed with pure fury and malice. Jaune stepped forward and gave it a glare of his own. Still looking it dead in the eye Jaune spoke so that his team could hear.

"Y'know Nora, after this battle I could kill for some toast...But, do you know what I want on it?"

Ren and Pyrrha gave him a look mixed between confusion and concern.

"Grimm Jam?" The Valkyrie suggested a hopeful look in her eyes.

"Got it in one." Jaune stepped aside with a sadistic smile as Nora stepped up to the plate, she switched Magnhild into its hammer form and leaned down next to the Mega-Grimm's head, her blue eyes only inches from Ursula's red ones.

"You hurt my Renny. That was a _BAD_ move."

The monster gave a pained growl as she raised Magnhild ritually and Jaune could swear he saw something akin to fear in the creatures eyes. With a smile the Hammer user brought Magnhild down upon the beast's armour, it cracked under the sheer force causing the monster to wail, a second blow deepened the fractures and only accentuated the various fractures, but the third strike was just right causing Ursula's bone defensed to cave and give way. As it did Nora pulled the trigger detonating one of her bright pink grenades (long since having run out of purple). The monsters head exploded in a shower of flesh and gore, staining all four of them with its life essence. JPR stood in horror as it rained Grimm chunks. Nora turned to them and hefted her hammer onto her shoulder it was dripping blood and had bits of dissipating brain on it. She beamed her characteristic smile at them.

"Did I do good?"

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><p>The four teenagers stood by the body of Ursula breathing heavily as they watched it disintegrate. They turned to find a column of the townspeople, Merlyn was at the head of the group, a terrified look on his face.<p>

"We heard 'er roar a-and some explosions, when it went all silent-like we feared the worst and decided to come and investig-"

He fell silent and eyed the body with a mixture of shock and awe.

"Ya did it... ya actually did it... the whole town's owes ya, if there's anythin' we can do jus' ask."

Jaune looked at his team and then back to the aged smith.

"S-sir, is there anywhere we could have hot showers? A-and maybe a change of clothes?"

The four hunters looked at him hopefully, the smith scratched at the stubble on his chin whilst he thought.

"Well, we can prob'ly dig up some clothes. But for the shower, we'd 'ave to check th' generator."

He gave a whistle and was joined by two of the younger townsfolk, Merlyn dispatched one to try and round up some fresh clothes from amongst the relatively untouched houses and the other to check on the town's generator. They nodded at his request and sprinted off.

The old man took one step aside and a tidal wave of villagers rushed forwards, some went over to the wreckage of the Ursa in disbelief to check it was really dead, others to see if the damage and the extent of the necessary repairs. However a third group crowded the four hunters and hefted them up and onto their shoulders, parading them back through the town and towards the square cheering their names as they went. No-one not even Ren could quell the rush of blood to their faces.

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><p>Team Juniper sat on the white steps of the town hall enjoying the late summer sunshine and chatting amicably amongst themselves. The white stone was back to its former glory having been rinsed clean of the staining upon them. They had tried helping the townsfolk in their efforts to tidy the square but had been shooed away every time and told that they were to rest, and so they did.<p>

For the majority of the first hour they had been surrounded by the town's children as they pestered to hear the story of their battle and glorious victory over the big mean Ursa and Nora was only happy to oblige, retelling the story over and over complete with animated hand-motions.

After the third telling the children had all scattered to tell their parents the story, laughing happily as they went. It was a refreshing sight to see compared with the frightened looks they had on the night before.

Jaune stood up as he saw the two youngsters from earlier running towards them. They were both carrying armfuls of clothes and were red faced from their exertion. They set the piles of clothing down on the steps beside them.

"S-sorry it's not much, it was the best of what we had left that should fit. Uhm...we got the generators working so you can take a shower if you'd like."

Jaune took a set of clothes from the pile, it was a plain white t-shirt and light brown pants. Next to him his team did the same. The team made their way back to their room (getting lost numerous times along the way), and retrieved their respective wash kits before being led off to the town's public shower block. The team split down by gender and entered their showers.

Words couldn't describe the feeling of relaxation Jaune felt as the water rushed over him. He looked down and saw the pool at his feet was black as night, clouded with Grimm blood. He set about washing away all the accumulated filth.

When the night left the shower block he felt like an entirely new man. His hair was back to its light golden and scraggly glory, an easy smile played about his lips. The clothes they had fetched him fit relatively well, although the pants were a tad too big around the waist and the t-shirt very 'snug' to say the least. On his left hip was hung the familiar weight of Crocea Mors.

He leant against the block's wall and closed his eyes, content to let the sun warm his face. He focussed on the sensation and became oblivious to all else. In an instant the sunlight was blocked out from his face and replaced with a light pressure on his lips. He opened his eyes slightly to find the familiar red hair of his partner and girlfriend. He returned her kiss passionately until they both separated gasping for breath.

She was clothed in a light green summer dress which complimented her eyes perfectly. She too looked rejuvenated, having rinsed the blemishes of combat from her features. Her eyes sparkled in the afternoon sun in a way that Jaune found entrancing. She tucked her head against his chest and held him tightly, he returned the favour, wrapping his arms around her waist.

They remained so until they were joined by their teammates, both clad in their new outfits borrowed from the townsfolk. The four made their way back towards the town hall, carrying their old blood stained clothes with them. Jaune opened his scroll messaging app and opened up Ozpin as a contact.

_'Mission complete, slight complication due to poor intel. Ready for evac whenever convenient.'_

He hit send, immediately welling up with dread at the prospect of a return flight in one of the rickety old Bullhead drop-ships. His scroll buzzed in his pocket as he walked, it was a reply from Ozpin.

_'Congratulations to both yourself and your team upon your mission's success. Bullhead retrieval organised for 0700 tomorrow morning. Arrival expected at approx 1100 for debriefing.'_

He put his scroll back into his pocket at the same moment Ren's went off. He opened his message with a curious look that switched to a wide smirk, the Lotus chuckled to himself.

"What does it say Renny?" Nora chirped to him, trying to read it over his shoulder.

"Ozpin says he wants to bet 50 lien on Jaune throwing up within half an hour on our flight tomorrow."

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><p><strong>*tut tut* Ozpin, encouraging betting is bad... Hope you enjoyed the chapter, Just to say, i imagined Merlyn as having a west country accent. I'll admit its not easy to write. Anyway, as always follow, favourite and review. All criticism is welcome, don't be shy. PM me with ideas, 'cause the manatees are on strike. Also don't forget to send me your suggestions for the next ship i'll write. Have good one and i hope to see you all in the next chapter<strong>


	11. A Return to Beacon

**Hey guys! heres the latest chapter, it's really just a little bit of filler before my next story arc. I wasn't going to be able to put out a big chapter for maybe a week or two so I wanted to give you all something to tide you over. I hope you enjoy the wrapping up of loose ends. As always i wanna thank you all for sticking with this work for the length of time you have. the support is amazing and is far more than I ever hoped to achieve, I started out of a love for a show and an enjoyment of writing and here we are over 13,000 views and over 100 followers later. So thank you all!**

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><p>Team JNPR awoke to the repeated and insistent buzzing of a scroll alarm. It went on uninterrupted for five minutes before Ren groaned and shut it off. Squinting as his eyes adapted to the bright display he read the time, 5am.<p>

His head pounded and his muscles ached, most likely from having been slapped through a solid timber wall by the mighty Grimm in addition to the hours of dancing and running around after Nora the night before. Regardless of the causes, it took every bit of his will power to not settle back into the warm embrace of sleep. It would take a long time before his batteries were fully recharged.

He clambered out of bed, stretched the soreness from his limbs and gently awoke his partner who yawned deeply stretching like a cat. Ren smiled as he caught sight of the couple in their corner. They were wrapped up tightly in each others arms, the perfect image of young love. He made his way over and lightly shook his leader awake with a smile, leaving it to him to wake the Champion.

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><p>The night before had been a night of celebration within the town, all in their honour. Despite the levels of damage that their town had sustained, the townsfolk banded together and pooled their resources. The few members of the town guard whom were uninjured were sent out into the surrounding woodland, they returned a couple of hours later laden with two fresh bucks. Some of the townsfolk returned to their homes and from their cellars retrieved cases of ale and wine, untouched by the events above ground.<p>

The square had been tidied and cleaned up, areas cleared out for the festivities. Torches were set around the steps of the hall transforming it into a makeshift stage. A couple of the villagers were fortunate to find their homes relatively untouched and retried cased instruments. The horde of men and women worked tirelessly as they busied themselves in their preparations, clearing away the broken stone in the square and gathering wood in the wait for nightfall when their festivities could truly begin.

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><p>Dusk fell as blazing orange light streamed across the late summer sky, in the square the bonfires and torches were lit and the prepared bucks were set on spits over them. The square was bathed in a warm and welcoming glow The smells were simply delightful, the slowly roasting meat gave off a pungent aroma that made their mouths water and their stomachs growl in protest at being made to wait. The townsfolk gathered and chatted, laughed and joked together. Even the wounded were brought out to enjoy the celebrations, although they were wrapped in a couple more blankets just to be on the safe side. All were in high spirits.<p>

The few musicians whom had been able to retrieve their prized instruments set up on the makeshift stage and had struck up a lively tune. It was catchy and in the heat of the moment Jaune approached his girlfriend holding out his hand with a wide grin on his face.

"May I have this dance?"

"Of course Jaune." she giggled

with that he had seized Pyrrha's hand, leading her off to join other lively dancers laughing the whole way.

The food was simple but good and there was plenty to go around. It was every bit as delicious as it looked and smelled. Nora had performed her usual and gone back for seconds and thirds before Ren had held her back to give the locals a look in, not to mention it had taken every ounce of his attention to prevent Nora hitting the ales and wines that flowed freely, he remembered all to well the 'incident' that occurred when last Nora drank unchecked.

The festivities had gone on long into the night, and into the early morning the wines and ales flowing like water. To the Knight and his blushing Champion time flew, they were in their own little world and aside from short breaks to eat, drink and catch their breath they had quite literally danced the night away. The festivities wound down as the villagers retreated into the hall for rest until at last only team Juniper remained, well them and the musicians.

Not wanting to spoil the young love they had seen in the blonde and red-head they had played on, although having toned down to soft and slow melodies. The couple swayed side to side locked it a soft embrace, their eyes firmly fixed on each other and their expressions soft.

"Y-you look beautiful tonight." he stammered, a light blush adorning his features. She leant in and kissed him lightly, a hint of embarrassment in her eyes.

"Thank you Jaune. You're not looking so bad yourself."

And so they returned to a comfortable silence, swaying in time with the slow rhythm of the music. At last they called it quits and retired for the night. Jaune was the last to leave, he made his way up to the musicians and put a fair amount of his Lien into one of their open cases. They looked at him with a mixture of shock and gratitude.

"Thanks for playing on guys, it was really kind of you."

He gave them a smile before he too returned to their room and took his place curled up with Pyrrha in the corner. He kissed her gently on the head and whispered to her, his breath tickling her ear.

"See, I told you it'd be OK."

She smiled at him, looking up into his eyes, she kissed him once more and snuggled against him. Much had changed since she had saved the oblivious blonde boy from impending doom in the Emerald forest. Much indeed. With those thoughts on her mind and Jaune's slow and rhythmic breathing in her ear she drifted into well deserved sleep.

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><p>Team Juniper had packed up in preparation for their departure by 6am, Ren being the only one keeping them going. If it hadn't been for their stoic teammate all three of them would have returned to their slumber until a more godly hour.<p>

They each shouldered their kit-bags and left the room, making their way through the hall. In the foyer they found a group of the more prominent townsfolk and the musicians from the night before. They all had saddened expressions on their faces.

"Yer didn't think we'd let yer go without sayin' goodbye now did yer?"

Merlyn, the towns grizzled old smith stepped out of the pack and made his way over. He shook each of their hands addressing them whilst he did and thanking them over and over for their help. When he got to Jaune he stopped in thought.

"Lad, you've got a top class team. We can't thank'ee enough for what you've done." the smith winked knowingly and added in a whisper just loud enough for the knight to hear.

"And lad, you've got a top quality girl there. You be sure to take care of her."

Jaune's cheeks coloured at the compliment, though more out of pride than embarrassment. The old man was right, he did have a top quality girl, the best in all of the world he was sure.

"Sir, it's she that looks after me if truth be told."

Merlyn chuckled, it was a deep sound that reverberated around the wide open foyer. He shook hands with the Knight once again.

Team Juniper, having said their goodbyes slipped out of the ornate hall and of into the outside world. It was a clear morning, the sun just beginning to rise. A fine mist hung over the town with a damp and earthy smell. It was a beautiful sight and one they each ensured to commit to memory.

With a sigh of resignation Jaune set off towards the clearing they had first landed in, Pyrrha walking close by his side and behind them the two lifelong friends followed together (but not together-together).

They hadn't been in the clearing long when the familiar sounds of turbines came within earshot. It was a further five minutes before the craft itself came into view, gliding low over the canopy. Jaune gaped in surprise, the drop-ship was bigger than the Bullhead class that they had been shipped out in. It dropped down and they swung open the doors, inside was one of the most welcoming sites Jaune had ever seen. The seats were all forward facing in rows of two and padded out with deep cushions.

"Luxury! Thank dust! Look at those seats, they're padded Ren!" he leapt onboard in his excitement dumped his bags into the storage bins and collapsed onto one of the front row seats groaning with a mixture of overwhelming comfort and joy. Pyrrha took her usual place with Ren and Nora sitting behind them.

The door was swung shut and the whine from the turbines increased in pitch and volume as the aircraft took off banking back towards Beacon.

_'Maybe this flight wont be too bad afterall'_ The knight thought optimistically as he settled into his seat and closed his eyes contentedly.

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><p>Oh how he was, not five minutes into the flight he was doubled over trying his best once again to calm his rebellious stomach, and once again Ren and Nora watched him intently. His only consolation was the soothing touch of his partner as she rubbed his back holding his nausea at bay. All he could really do was wait and pray for the flight to be over.<p>

Half an hour passed and still Jaune felt no better, he was eternally grateful for his partner's efforts. Jaune knew that she was shattered, and yet still Pyrrha insisted on soldiering on and doing her best to ease his comfort.

"Ren, you had best tell Ozpin he lost." The Champion smirked

Ren sighed to himself and typed a message out into his scroll. Jaune smiled weakly at having been able to prove the headmaster wrong, albeit with the help of his partner.

Suddenly the feeling of movement on his back stopped, his nausea returned stronger than ever, looking up he saw Pyrrha stand and make her way over to the drop-ship's onboard galley. She returned with a can of Pumpkin Pete's brand soda her own face printed across it, she retook her seat and began sipping at her drink.

Their transport hit a rough patch of turbulence sending Jaune a rather unflattering shade of green. He opened his mouth to utter a silent prayer to any and all gods that would hear his pleas, a gurgling sound erupted from his stomach and he knew what was about to happen. He flailed around frantically searching for his air sickness bag, his fingers grasped it at the last possible moment and secured it over his mouth and nose just as he wretched and loosed a torrent of his semi digested breakfast.

Once he finished heaving he groaned and cast a glance around in an attempt to stop his world from spinning. Next to him, Pyrrha had a smug look on her face. One of her graceful arms held aloft as Ren scowled and placed a sizeable roll of paper money into her hand. Jaune's jaw dropped from his sense of betrayal. Pyrrha turned back round and caught his look, a flash of guilt crossing behind her eyes.

She stared back at him impassive as she counted out the cash in her hand, a weak smile on her lips she proffered up roughly half of it to her partner. Jaune stared utterly dumbfounded first at his partner and then the money in her hands, its amount was not to be sniffed at. It all clicked into place.

_'She played them! The drink was an excuse for her to stop rubbing my back and allow my motion-sickness to kick back in! Clever...'_

He couldn't help but admire her actions, although he wished she had run it by him first.

"That'll teach them not to make bets." She shrugged, with a small smile pushed the wad of Lien into his hands.

Behind them Ren scowled at the back of the red-head, he knew there was something fishy about her making him a bet but money clouded his judgement, the amount she had offered wasn't small. He cursed his luck internally, it was not every day that someone managed to throw him for a loop. This had been a bad weekend financially, he shrugged accepting his loses.

_'Well, you win some and lose most, such is life.'_

The martial-artist watched as Pyrrha began her attempts to soothe their leader's stomach once again before he closed his eyes and sank into sleep, longing for his bed back in their dorm room.

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><p>With Pyrrha's help Jaune survived the remainder of the flight and only heaved twice more. The aircraft touched down and they disembarked, once their eyes adjusted they found Professors Ozpin and Goodwitch stood patiently in front of them. Goodwitch had her usual unamused expression, but Ozpin favoured them with a smile.<p>

"Welcome home students, if you would be so kind as to follow me. We have _much_ to discuss."

With a subdued groan the four teenagers followed after their professors, they were led into the imposing tower which the staff called home and pressed into the elevator up to Ozpin's office. The doors opened and Ozpin made his way to his chair behind his desk. He motioned for his companions to take seats across from him and leant on his elbows, his fingers laced together. Goodwitch's took her place behind Ozpin and leant against the windowsill, her arms folded and familiar riding crop in hand.

"Now tell me, what happened in that quiet little town to the North?"

And so Jaune launched into a full account of their escapades in the little town; of their arrival to find a deserted town, of how they found the villagers and been told about Ursula the terror inducing Mega-Grimm and the resulting battle and victory. Jaune invited his teammates' interjections with their own points of view and memories of the events.

Throughout the tale Ozpin remained impassive, listening intently. His gaze remained fixed on and alternated between the four teenagers in front of him, only breaking away briefly each time he drank from his ever present coffee mug.

Some food and drinks were brought in for them around halfway through Jaune's story, the Knight soldiered on, pausing only to eat a few bites and wet his whistle. Besides him Pyrrha and Ren quietly nibbled and Nora gorged herself as much as the subtle gestures Ren gave her would allow.

When the Knight finished they sat in uncomfortable silence, Ozpin's eyes flicked to each member of the team and scrutinized them all.

"You have faced a powerful foe and emerged the victor. That is no small feat and as such you should all be proud. From your reports you conducted yourselves as ambassadors and hunters should. You have changed the lives of a great many people and rescued livelihoods. You have achieved what all my students aspire to. Well done."

Goodwitch nodded approvingly at the words as Ozpin spoke.

"Now I'm sure you're all very tired from your trip, and I'm sure you would appreciate the opportunity to rest so the rest of the day is yours to do with as you see fit."

The student's faces lit up. Finally! They could sleep, rest and recuperate.

"Thank you sir!" they spoke in unison and stopped dead, surprised at their level of synchronisation.

"You are dismissed. Mr Arc, I should like to have a word before you go."

Jaune nodded to his team and watched them leave. He turned back around and focused his eyes on the headmaster sat across from him.

"Mr Arc, I should like to once again offer my congratulations on your achievements. You lead your team in exactly the way I expect you to. You adjusted to the problem when you found our intelligence to be flawed and countered the problem. That requires a tactical mind indeed. Your scheme for the downfall of this high class grimm was fairly good considering the situation. I shall be passing your mission details onto Professor Port whom shall grade your efforts as an extra-credit assignment. You may go."

Jaune thanked the two professors and bolted from the room, hurrying to make the very most of his remaining time. Once he had left the room silence reigned. Ozpin drinking his coffee and Goodwitch tapping away on her large scroll.

"Ozpin, it was a risky move sending them out there, that was a third year mission and you know it."

"Glynda, you worry too much. You may have your doubts about him, but that boy is an Arc, and the way he's shaping up he may well be one of the strongest yet."

"He is one of the weakest first years in terms of combat."

"And yet he led his team in combat against a high class grimm and emerged victorious. He fights with his mind, through careful planning. An admirable quality which more than makes up for his lack in fighting skill. You heard the story as well as I did, their level of cohesion as a team is startling."

Goodwitch gave a resounding _'Hmph' _ as she too left the room. Ozpin sat alone, laced his fingers together and smiled.

_'It truly is shaping up to be an interesting year.'_

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><p>Jaune returned from the showers and lightly towelled off his hair. The water itself had helped relax his tired muscles, but had only served to make himself drowsier. He swan dived onto his bed and landed on something soft, it gave a brief yelp of pain as he bounced off and onto the floor.<p>

The knight sat dazed and confused, looking up he found an annoyed looking Pyrrha, she sat up in her bronze and red trimmed nightgown with a playful frown on her face and her arms folded.

"P-Pyrrha I'm so sorry! I-I didn't see you!"

She giggled as her Knight tried to frantically apologise for his mistake, a hint of colour touched his cheeks as she laughed. With her usual warm smile she raised the duvet and invited him in to join her.

The blonde was all too happy to oblige, although he chuckled at the fact he had been invited into his own bed...No, it was _their_ bed now, since Pyrrha didn't seem to want to leave and he didn't want her to leave.

The covers were warm to the touch as he crawled in next to his girlfriend, he snuggled in, the light tingle of her breathing against his bare chest. He simply wrapped an arm around her, lightly kissing the top of her head.

"Hey Pyrrha." he whispered.

"Yes Jaune?" came her hushed reply.

"I love you, more than you will ever know."

She turned her head to look him in the eye but was interrupted by the sensation of his lips meeting her own. It was in that moment, no matter how brief that she felt the sincerity of his words. Their kiss was full of tender affection and yet had a wild passion to it layered underneath. The old saying was true. Actions truly do speak louder than words.

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><p><strong>Right, so there we are .Sorry if it's not up to my usual standard, but it was super late and i didn't have the will power to proof read. I need your help, as much as i hate to admit it, I'm at a total loss for where to take this fic next. I have a dustmas arc planned but after that is an empty expanse of void needing to be filled with meaningful plot or fluff. and I'ts from you guys id like to draw my inspirations. I want y'all to send in your plot suggestions, and the catchiest i will do my best to write. The owner of the concept will be fully credited with their ideas. As always please follow and favourite, leave a review and feed my ego or smash it down. thanks.<strong>

**Poll: my next fic's pairing let me know your suggestions.**

**RoseArc. 1**

**JaunexVelvet 1**


	12. A Vytal Hit

**Hello again everyone, did you miss me?**

**Well we're back to our regular updates again. first off, i would like to thank you all for your continued support, and secondly id like to apologise. This may not be up to scratch, i've not really proof read it and my brain has turned to Jam. so please bear with me. And now, on with the show!**

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><p>It had been two weeks since Team Juniper had returned from their first assignment, and in that time they had escalated to celebrity status amongst the first year students as well as some of the older hunters-in-training. They had been bombarded by questions about their bout with the Mega-Grimm Ursula and about how they had succeeded.<p>

They had enjoyed it at first, but being the centre of attention is rarely fun for long, and as the weeks wore on it became more of an irritation that anything else. They struggled to get time to themselves, their usual conversations with team RWBY were cut short by a continual stream of interruptions until they eventually stopped trying to speak and ate in silence.

A first year with bright teal hair came over to their table, Jaune knew why before he even arrived.

"H-hey, did you rea-"

He never finished his sentence, Jaune's fist had slammed down onto the worn wood cutting him short.

"YES! It's true, it has been true for the last two weeks and will continue to be true until we all die! Now please can you all stop pestering us!?"

The Knight's voice was filled with a mixture of anger and frustration as he stood up.

The canteen went silent, not a single sound was made as they all stared at the blonde leader of team Juniper, anxiously awaiting what he would say next. The first year whom had incurred his wrath cowered back with a look of absolute shock on his face.

"It goes for all of you! Just let us be! I swear the next person to question us about that blasted mission will be getting personally acquainted with Magnhild courtesy of Nora!"

Nora gave a maniacal laugh and cracked her Knuckles to support his threat. There wasn't a single student in the cafeteria that didn't visibly cringe at his threat. They had all seen Nora's monster hammer in action and the accounts of her feats against the Mega-Grimm's legs had only served to strengthen their fears.

He gave a long sigh and returned to his seat shooting Nora a thumbs-up for her part in the performance to which more Ren,Blake and Weiss rolled their eyes. Conversations sprang up around the dining hall and soon it was filled with the sounds of dining and laughter once again. Team RWBY and Juniper weren't disturbed again, in fact the other students seemed to actively go out of their way to distance themselves from the Blonde leader and his team, and it was _bliss_.

"Well, well Vomit-Boy. Didn't know you had it in ya." Yang remarked earning the collected scowls of the Knight, Champion and oddly enough Ruby. The brawler recoiled in her seat and contented herself by chatting quietly with Blake. Pyrrha placed a hand lightly on his shoulder and gave it a light squeeze as she stood to return her tray. The two teams enjoyed small talk together for the first time in two weeks, the old jokes were re-ignited and all was good with the world.

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><p>Team Juniper left their last class of the day, history with Oobleck and made their way out, laughing at the large berth the other students were giving them. Jaune's head was still spinning from his attempts to follow Oobleck as he rocketed around the classroom at break-neck pace. He made it into a kind of game, he would do his best to follow the Doctor with his eyes until he lost eye contact. His personal record was precisely seventeen seconds.<p>

Juniper made their way back to the dorm for their post lesson pancakes, courtesy of Ren. The rich smells of Ren's secret-recipe pancakes permeated throughout the halls of the residential block. It was common belief amongst Pyrrha,Nora and Jaune that the batter had a hint of cinnamon and various fruits, although they would never find out if they were right. Ren Guarded his recipe jealously even from Nora. Although it always surprised both Jaune and Pyrrha that she hadn't worked it out yet, given how many she had eaten in her lifetime.

Before long, team RWBY knocked on their dorm door, drawn by the sweet smell of pancakes and the opportunity to catch up with their friends for the first time in weeks. Ruby led them in carrying armfuls of snacks and followed by her sister who hefted the drinks, Behind them came Blake and Weiss whom carried sleeping bags. All four girls were in their Pyjamas. JNPR looked at them quizzically and awaited an explanation.

"It's been so long since we have hung out, and since it's a Friday we thought we could all catch up and have a sleepover!" Ruby's excitement shone through, reiterated by her teammates.

Jaune was about to object but remembered just how difficult it was to argue with the four girls, they had a tendency to gang up against you and so it was usually best to just roll with it. And besides, what's the worst that can possibly happen.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea Rubes." he said surprising them all.

"Is this your way of seeing us all in our Pyjamas Jaune? Hoping to catch an eye-full?" Yang teased waggling her eyebrows suggestively. Both Pyrrha and Ruby glared daggers at the brawler, catching their looks she piped down again.

"What exactly did you have in mind for this evening?" Ren's dulcet tones came through from the kitchen as he busied himself cleaning up the kitchen.

"Usual sleepover things" Ruby dismissed him casually "Chat, laugh, play spin the bottle."

At the mention of 'spin the bottle' Yang's eyes lit up and a look of horror crossed the faces of the other girls present. Unbeknownst to Jaune, Yang was a fiend at the game. The other girls feared her 'truth' questions and her 'dares' even more. They had had to enforce additional rules since she had duct taped Weiss to the outside of the dorm door as a forfeit. She had been there for three hours red-faced before they had cut her down, although not before she had been seen by half of all the first-years. Her embarrassment had reached entirely new heights, she still hadn't forgiven Yang for that one in particular.

With their night planned team Juniper changed into their respective pyjamas, with Jaune opting for a pair of lounge pants rather than his rabbit onesie. Pyrrha had on her bronze and red nightgown, Ren his green t-shirt and shorts and Nora was in her 'boop' t-shirt and black lounge pants.

Jaune plugged his scroll into a speaker and put on some music, whilst the others made space and gathered into a circle in the centre of the room. Jaune joined them, taking his place in between Pyrrha and Ruby. Even Ren sighed and sat next to Nora, willing to play along. Yang produced the bottle and held it aloft like some form of ritual object, Jaune's palms grew sweaty as his trepidation grew.

"S-shouldn't we lay out the ground rules first?" he stammered nervously.

The five girls agreed, fervently. Yang rolled her eyes.

"OK, what rules do you propose?"

"Everyone gets one 'pass'. A-and nothing too...inappropriate." said Weiss.

"Forfeits must stay inside this room" Pyrrha chimed in.

"No dares that risk the wrath of Goodwitch!" Ruby exclaimed.

Yang sighed at the rules, they stifled her capabilities to no end but she could work around that.

"Fine... now can we begin?"

They all nodded and Yang spun the bottle. Jaune watched it nervously and was relieved to see it end up on Weiss.

"So Ice Queen, truth or dare?" Yang gave a smirk as Weiss' eye twitched at the use of her nickname.

"I choose truth." The Heiress stared down Yang defiantly.

"Very well... What's the deal with you and Neptune?"

"N-nothing! We're just f-friends!" Weiss stuttered, her face flushing with colour. She hid behind her hands in an attempt to hide it from her blonde tormentor.

"Sure~ whatever you say 'snow angel'" Once again Yang's eyebrows went mad.

With a glare at her brash teammate Weiss sent the bottle spinning, it landed on Blake.

"Truth or dare Blake?"

Blake pondered her options briefly, the heiress was known for being quite tame and so she'd be quite safe regardless.

"Dare." she said with a smirk.

Weiss paused a moment in thought when, to Blake's absolute horror, Yang leant over and whispered something into the Schnee's ear. The Schnee's face lit up with an evil grin.

"Blake, I dare you to read a chapter from your 'Ninjas of Love' novel, out loud to us."

Blake dead-panned at the heiress, growling slightly as she considered whether it was worth going for it or not. She thought back on the contents of her smut novel and swiftly decided against it.

"Pass..." she grumbled to herself before spinning the bottle once more.

Jaune sighed resignedly as the bottle landed on him. He looked Blake in the eyes and awaited his fate.

"Truth or dare Jaune?"

The Knight considered his options, it was either he most likely spilled a secret of his or he would perform in some way for the amusement of others. Embarrassment had to follow one way or the other.

"T-truth." he whimpered

"Very well, Tell us all exactly how you feel about Pyrrha."

Jaune's cheeks burned as blood rushed to his face. He contemplated passing, but decided against the idea. It was likely that worse rounds would follow. He took a steadying breath and cast a brief glimpse at his partner. He began to talk, pouring his heart out slowly but surely, gaining confidence as he went along.

" W-well, to put it simply, I love her. S-she's the most beautiful girl I've ever laid eyes on, everything from her hair, to her eyes, to her lips to her perfect body. I love every curve and contour. She's kind and compassionate and has been the greatest of friends to me, looking out for me when no-one else would and taking me under her wing, she even went so far as to save my life when I was no more that a total stranger. But she's even more than that, she is the first person here to have had actual faith in me, and that is worth more than anything. But I guess what I love most is that I feel totally comfortable around her, she likes me for who I am, warts and all."

"Y'know Jaune, I think they do a cream for that." Yang taunted.

Those gathered burst into fits of giggles, Ren and Blake smirked behind their hands. Only Pyrrha refrained from laughing. Instead she leant over and drew her Knight in by his t-shirt and locked her lips around his oblivious to the girls around him. The kiss was long and passionate, on an instinct he gently ran his tongue across her lips, she parted them and their tongues met in a dance of passion.

They finally separated, gasping for air. Jaune collapsed back his eyes glazed over in a daze of passion. Jaune had never had a kiss quite like it, but it left him desiring ever more from his partner. He recovered from his stupor five minutes later to find all of his friends watching him intently, Pyrrha's face was a solid red though her eyes were sparkling brightly as she did her best to hide her face behind her hands. He reached out and pulled her hand away and entwining his own with it. With his other he reached out and sent the bottle spinning once more.

* * *

><p>Their game went on long into the night with each subsequent forfeit becoming more and more extreme until at its highest point Ruby was forced to eat a raisin cookie, she still hadn't emerged from the dorm's en-suite. The sounds of her heaving could still be heard loud and clear. After that they had called it quits, not wanting to end up hospitalising anyone.<p>

Over the course of the night Jaune had fallen victim to his fair share of forfeits which had seen him (much to both his and Pyrrha's horror) having to make-out with each and every girl present. It seemed that team RWBY were organising in an attempt to get under the champion's skin through him, and although he hated being used in such a manner he couldn't help but enjoy his forfeits a little.

Once Ruby had returned to them they, one by one, retired for the night. Pyrrha and Jaune through mutual agreement decided on separate beds for the night, just for whilst their friends were sharing the room with them. Team RWBY lay sprawled out all over the floor space in their various sleeping bags.

It was not long before they had all fallen asleep, save for Jaune. He couldn't bring himself to sleep, both because of Yang's harsh snoring and because his bed lacked the familiar warmth of a certain Champion. He missed the feeling of her head upon his chest after so long sharing his bed with her, it felt hollow and empty.

Across the room from the Knight Pyrrha tossed and turned, unable to find a configuration of her pillows that matched the feeling of Jaune's torso. She had grown accustomed to its steady rise and fall as well as the rhythmic beating of his heart, a heart which belonged to her just as much as her own heart belonged to her blonde goofball. Their two sighs sounded within the darkened room, followed by a soft chuckle from the Blonde's direction. It seems the two were in the same boat after all.

* * *

><p>Pyrrha awoke the next morning to the smell of fresh pancakes. The team's collapsible table and chairs were out and all of her friends were gathered around each with their own stack of pancakes. At her approach Jaune stood and handed her a plate, on it was her usual amount of pancakes, but on top was a collection of summer fruits sliced up and arranged to form the words; 'morning beautiful'. Looking back at Jaune he beamed a wide toothy grin which she couldn't help but reciprocate. She took her place and tucked into her breakfast whilst the others discussed their weekend plans.<p>

"So, are we gonna do our usual and head into Vale this weekend? My armour could use a touch up." Jaune suggested off-handedly.

"No you dolt! Don't you know that the qualifiers for the Vytal festival tournament are today?"

Team Juniper stared in disbelief.

"W-when was that announced? We hadn't heard a thing about it."

"It was whilst you were away on assignment. Ozpin called the whole school into the auditorium for an announcement and warned us that we only had a few weeks to hone our skills in preparation for the heats."

Weiss took a deep breath as she finished her explanation. Juniper all looked on in shock, before at long last Pyrrha broke the silence.

"So what time do the qualifiers start?"

The Heiress took on a look of satisfied pride.

"The singles division starts in around an hour-and-a-half, and the partnership division is late afternoon, at four."

"Wait what? We can fight in two divisions?" Asked Jaune whom had, up to this point, never watched a tournament in his life. It was Pyrrha who explained the situation to him.

"Basically Jaune, the singles matches are when each contestant fights one-on-one through the heats right up to the final. In the Partnership division the contestants compete with their team partners for the title."

"So which are you going to compete in Weiss?" Jaune asked, having grasped a better understanding of the way the tournament worked.

"Well, Ruby and I have decided to compete in both divisions."

Again, all those assembled dead-panned at the Heiress. It was widely known that the Ice queen was excessively competitive, but the concept of fighting two big league matches and three opponents was no mean feat.

"Well, if you can do it, Jaune and I can too." Pyrrha said with a grin, standing determinedly with one fist raised in the air.

Jaune looked up at her and loosed an anguished groan, he knew there was no changing the Spartan's mind when she was like this. He would simply have to go along with it and hope, no, pray that it all worked out OK. And besides, in saying no he'd break her heart, she loved to fight and he had to admit he enjoyed fighting alongside her.

* * *

><p>Once they had all finished breakfast, showered and packed up, the two teams made their way down to the training facility for the qualifier matches. They joined the queue and registered with the Vytal tournament officials, whom checked over their weapons and clothing to ensure they all conformed to tournament regulations.<p>

Once registered they made their way through into a temporary antechamber, from here they would be called one by one into the main arena to have their combat abilities tested. Contained within the room were a few familiar faces, Jaune spied Velvet sitting with her team as well as team Cardinal.

Jaune's nerves flew to previously un-reached levels as his hands trembled in a way they hadn't since his first date with Pyrrha, as the combatants were called up. The ring of steel on steel could be heard clear as day. He felt a warm hand clasp his own and turned to face Pyrrha. The Mistralian gave him a reassuring smile and held his hand until she too was called up.

Jaune was the last to be called a robotic voice called his name through a PA system. With a steadying breath he rose to his feet and made his way out and into the qualifier arena, It was pitch black. All of a sudden he was engulfed in the blinding light from four or five floodlights.

Before his eyes had time to adjust he caught the faint sound of footsteps sprinting towards him, followed by a dull hum. Every instinct in his body screamed as he knew what was coming, his vision adjusted just in time to catch sight of a sword swinging straight for his head. He couldn't reach his own weapons in time to block them, the blade came down.

At the very last moment possible he threw his body off to the side and out of the path of the sword's deadly bite. He rolled to his feet, drew his own sword and assessed his surroundings. Across from him where he had just been was a robot not dissimilar from those the beacon students use to train on. In its hand was a long and exceptionally cruel looking scimitar, a series of small ridge cut into the spine of its blade. Emblazoned on the droid's chest was the four ring symbol of the Vytal festival. Looking around he could see no sign of spectators or judges.

_'Very well, if they want a show, then a show they shall have!' _he thought to himself, a chuckle erupting from within him.

He rushed the training robot a sent a slash at mid-level only to have it blocked. To his surprise the robot countered with incredible speed, hacking and slashing in a wild flurry forcing the Knight onto the defensive. The robot's weapon connecting eliciting a yelp of pain from him.

Jaune staggered back with a growl, trying to put as much distance between himself and the metal swordsman as possible. He checked his scroll's aura gauge and was dismayed to find his own to have decreased by a sizeable amount.

He readopted his 'ready' stance, keeping his legs wide and his body lower to the ground just like Pyrrha had taught him. He raised his shield and waited, circling his opponent. This time the robot took the offensive, launching a withering offensive as it flowed seamlessly between forms. During one of its transitions Jaune caught sight of his opening. It was a small opening but it was exploitable.

He edged forwards, his shield off to the side in the hopes of goading it into a favourable strike pattern. As he expected the Scimitar whistled towards him, its owner engaging him ferociously. During one movement the training droid transferred its weight onto its right foot and stepped forward with a heavy overhead slash, Jaune seized his opportunity.

He lunged forward with his shield and knocked the machination off-balance and following it up with a diagonal slash rending it from its mechanical shoulder to hip, leaving ragged metal and frayed, sparking wiring in his wake.

In a sudden flash the droid exploded violently sending shrapnel all over the arena, Jaune failed to raise his shield in time. He felt something collide with his leg and a searing pain that followed. Casting a glance down he saw a large chunk of razor sharp metal protruding from his thigh, just above the knee. His jeans were slowly being dyed red as his life essence leaked from within him.

His head swam at the sight as he grew unstable on his feet. He got the feeling of flying as the ground rushed up eagerly to meet him, his weapons clattered to the ground and his head connected with the cold hard stone. His world went black.

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><p><strong>Thank you for reading, this is the beginning of the Vytal tournament arc. i dont know how many chapters i want to do on this segment yet, but itll hopefully take me up to around christmas for a bit of a seasonal arc.<strong>

**As always; follow, favourite and review.**

**Poll:A fascinating little experiment, the majority of interest has pooled in three ships in particular**

**Arkos-14**

**RoseArc-9**

**JaunexCoco-7**

**WhiteRose-3**

**JaunexVelvet-1**

**WhiteKnight-3**

**seems you guys enjoy the Arkos, keep voting for your choices, poll is linked on my profile. It shall remain open until the 19th of december. Go mental guys! let me know what you want so i may do my best to provide. in two days ill remove the two lowest voted options options so vote for the ones you want. **

**see you all in the next chapter.**


	13. Jaune? Aura you ok?

**Hello everyone and welcome back. I'll admit I'm not too happy with this chapter or even the last few. I feel as though Jaune is turning out to be a bit of a Mary-Sue, so i promise I'll try and tone him down a little. Anyway please enjoy the latest chapter.**

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><p>Jaune groggily opened his eyes and was confused to see white ceiling tiles. His head felt like an death-stalker had danced the fandango upon it, in short, it hurt. He turned his head tentatively so as to better take in his surroundings. He was lying in a bed covered in sterile white sheets. Around him there were several others just like his own, some empty and others not. He recognised the room as being Beacon's infirmary. Next to him was a heart monitor, beeping steadily along with his heart.<p>

To his surprise, his eyes fell upon a flash of red in the otherwise white landscape. Sitting by his bedside was Pyrrha. She had fallen asleep, her head resting on the sheets next to his leg. He reached out and ran his fingers through her hair, it was smooth to the touch. As he did she stirred, looking up at him with blurry eyes. Surprise and joy bloomed across her features at the sight of the now awakened Knight. Her emerald eyes sparkling midst their puffy surroundings.

The Knight tried to move himself into a sitting position but gave a stifled cry as an unbearable searing pain shot up his right leg from the knee. He took deep breaths whilst his head swam and his vision flickered.

In an instant Pyrrha shot out of her seat and helped Jaune to sit up, her touch was gentle and yet firm. Once he was settled comfortably and the pain had receded to a dull throbbing he wiped the sweat from his forehead and turned his attentions back to his partner.

"P-Pyrrha, what happened to me?" his face held a confused expression which Pyrrha couldn't help but giggle at, before her face once again took on a concerned look.

"Well Jaune, you remember the qualifiers for the Vytal festival?" she asked slowly, Jaune nodded dutifully, it was the only bit he could remember.

"Well, after we all went in and fought we waited outside for you to come through, but you didn't. We were all moved out of the way and you were carried out on a stretcher. The doctors said a piece of metal had torn into your leg, and that you'd lost a lot of blood. They took you straight into surgery. W-we...I was so scared Jaune, I thought I'd lost you."

Her voice trembled as fresh tears made their way down her face. The blonde reached out and took one of her hands in his own, tracing circles across the back of it with his thumb.

"Hey now Pyrrha. Don't cry, I'm alright aren't I? It's gonna take a bit more than a little piece of metal to take me away from you. I am not going anywhere anytime soon OK? You have my word." He smiled reassuringly and drew her into a hug, ignoring the protests from his leg. He held her there in a warm embrace until she had cried herself out. Then with a final kiss on the top of her head he released her, allowing her to return to her seat.

The doctor knocked lightly and entered.

"Ah Mr. Arc! You're awake at last. How're you feeling?" he asked cheerily.

"Uh, well aside from the feeling that the Beacon marching band is playing a drummers chorus in my head, I'm OK."

"Hmm, well that is to be expected I suppose. You took quite a nasty knock to your head. Other than that you have the injury to your leg. Your aura will heal it of course but it will take some time, but until it has were going to keep you in here."

Jaune sighed and leant back into his pillows. If there was one thing he hated most it was being cooped up for any lengthy stretch of time.

"How long do you think it'll be doctor?"

The doctor scratched his chin before moving over to the Knight. At a nod from the doctor Jaune pulled back his covers exposing his heavily bandaged leg. The doctor unwrapped it, but regardless of how gentle he was Jaune still gave the occasional groan of pain.

Jaune took a steadying breath and took a look at his mutilated leg and was surprised to find it was not as bad as he had feared. A long line of stitches trailed the full width of his thigh on a slight diagonal running from his knee up to his inner thigh around midway up. The skin was red and slightly inflamed but overall didn't seem to badly damaged, the metal having made a clean cut.

The doctor poked around at the tissue eliciting groans from the Blonde through gritted teeth. He felt Pyrrha tighten her grip on his hand in an effort to support him. He gave a sharp yelp as the doctor probed a particularly sensitive area.

"Hmm. Well it seems to be healing nicely, with the rate its healing you should be back on your feet in time to spectate the upcoming tournament."

Jaune's jaw dropped, the doctor re-wrapped his leg and left the two teenagers alone once again. The Knight turned to his girlfriend his eyes glazed over.

"I-I'm sorry Pyrrha, I know you wanted to compete in bo-"

He was silenced by the red head placing a single slender finger on his lips.

"Jaune, you have nothing to be sorry for. I'm just happy that you're going to be alright."

"But we were going to compete together! I dont wanna miss this because some stupid robot exploded and hit my leg! I would've qualified if it hadn't and then we'd be at the partnership division qualifiers!"

Pyrrha attempted to mumble a consolation but her eyes widened and her jaw dropped as his whole body glowed in pale white light. Jaune gave her a terrified look .The room took on an eerie appearance as the Knight's aura flared brightly. Jaune grunted as he felt his leg itch,then burn until he found himself howling in agony. Every fibre of his thigh screamed out it pain as his aura went to work.

The doctor came running through the door, drawn by the blondes agonised shouts. His jaw dropped at the spectacle before him. His patient was lit up like a Dustmas tree, wreathed in a white mist. Never in all his medical career, some thirty years, had he seen an aura flare to such a degree. He could feel it, an oppressive power full of frustration.

After a couple of minutes Jaune ceased glowing. His sat slack-jawed, just as clueless as the others. His head had ceased to pound. He gave Pyrrha a mischievous grin and raised his hand. Before the confused Champion had a chance to react he made balled his hand into a fist and brought it down with a resounding thud onto his 'injured' leg.

"Well Mr. Arc, you _are_ full of surprises aren't you?"

Pyrrha gave her boyfriend a look of wonderment, she had only ever seen and felt his aura flare like that in cases of extreme danger such as his sparring match with Nora or during a spike of anger or frustration. Given the circumstances, it seemed most likely that this was a prime example of the second option.

"S-so does this mean I can go now?" Jaune gave the doctor a hopeful look.

"Now, now Mr. Arc lets not get ahead of ourselves. I'll need to check over your injuries before I can clear you to leave."

The next five minutes for Jaune were some of the lengthiest in his life. The doctor unwrapped his leg for the second time and spent what Jaune was sure was an unnecessarily long time examining the muscle tissue and prodding his leg accompanied by a series of 'hmm's. Finally he stepped back from the Knight with a surprised expression. Jaune looked at him expectantly.

"Mr. Arc in all my years I have never seen anyone heal so severe a wound entirely with their aura in so short a time without exhausting their reserves. It is beyond my knowledge as to how you did it, but from a purely medical standpoint your leg is in a perfectly serviceable condition. Your aura flare even removed all traces of my stitching work. I suppose that you,uh, well I suppose you're free to go. I'll have a nurse bring you your personal effects and the discharge paperwork."

He turned on his heel and made his way out muttering to himself about 'kids these days'. Jaune chuckled as he watched his doctor leave before returning his attentions to the Spartan at his bedside whom was still staring at him in shock.

"Y'know Pyrrha, you could take a picture. It'd last longer." he winked playfully, drawing the Amazoness out of her stupor. She smiled warmly and drew him into a bear hug.

"And why Mr. Arc, would I want a picture when I can have the real thing?" she retorted as she released him. Jaune blushed at her compliment and looked around for a change of subject in an attempt to save face. An idea dawned on him.

"Pyrrha! What time is it?!" his question shot out with more force than he had intended. The Red head checked her scroll. "

It's 4:30, why?"

He responded by throwing back his covers and leaping out of his bed.

"Cause if we hurry we can make the qualifiers for the partnership division!"

Pyrrha couldn't help but giggle at her boyfriend's exuberance, it was odd enough for her to see him hopping about with an energy to rival Nora's but the fact he was doing it in a hospital gown pushed her over the edge. She leant forward onto the sheets of the now empty bed, her body hit by wave after wave of mirth until tears streamed down her face and her lungs burned for air.

That was how the nurse found them. Him stood hands on his hips his gown open at the back and shifting in the breeze and her gasping for breaths, desperately trying to quell another wave of laughter. She pinched the bridge of her nose and set Jaune's clothes on his bed along with the discharge forms. She gave a sigh and walked back out.

Jaune feverishly tore off his hospital gown leaving Pyrrha unsure of where to look, she blushed and ended up staring at the floor drawing circles with the tip of her left foot, although sneaking glances when she thought Jaune wasn't looking. After all she thought mischievously, why not enjoy the eye candy if it's there?

Once Jaune had scrambled into his clothes he scrawled his signature onto the discharge forms and practically ran out the door pulling Pyrrha along by her hand. He handed he document over at reception and rocketed off to the dorms, his partner hot on his heels.

They burst through the door panting heavily to find a very surprised Ren and an overly excited Nora. At the sight of her leader she bounded over and drew him into a bone crushing hug.

"Jauney! You're all better!"

Jaune replied only with a series of gurgling sounds. He loved his teammate like an eighth sister but he did wish that she would be just a little more gentle sometimes.

"I-it's good to see you too Nora." he gasped out.

She let him go and with an ear-to-ear grin before 'booping' him on the nose. Jaune gave Ren a smile that promised an explanation later as he changed his jeans. He tossed the torn and bloodied ones onto an old hoodie in the corner, his 'lucky' hoodie.

Satisfied with his fresh set of jeans he nodded to Pyrrha whom returned the favour, a look of fierce determination in his eyes. He gave his excuses to Ren and Nora and set off down the hall and out of the residential block at a run, Pyrrha keeping pace by his side.

Once outside they angled towards the training centre, they crossed the campus in a record time and were relieved to see the registration stands still out and manned. They came to a stop and taking a breath Jaune approached, slamming down his family seal. Pyrrha doing the same a moment later.

"Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos to register." he said proudly, puffing out his chest.

"Very well, Step into the arena when you're ready and the test will begin."

The two warriors walked into the main arena side by side, prepared for whatever the Vytal judges had to throw at them.

* * *

><p>The two warriors emerged from the arena no longer than half an hour later to find an audience of their friends waiting, surprise on their faces. They were enveloped in the rising haze of the evening sun. Jaune's hoodie and jeans were torn and ragged and the Invincible girl's armour was scratched and dented. They both had determined looks on their faces. They each had their respective weapons in hand and before their assembled crowd Jaune held Crocea Mors out, its blade pointed to the sky. Pyrrha reached out with Miló and clanged against it. The sword and spear silhouetted in the dying sunlight, a testament to their partnership.<p>

Weiss rolled her eyes at the blatant showmanship, muttering about it being;

_'Ill befitting of a warrior of Pyrrha's stature to show-boat'_

The rest of team RWBY and Juniper merely laughed at the Heiress' reaction cause her to turn bright red in a mixture of frustration and embarrassment.

"Careful there Ice Queen, you'll hold up traffic with a face that red!" Yang teased, the teenagers doubling over with mirth, tears streaming down their face.

The JP of Juniper finally made it over to their friends, wide smiles rushing to their faces at the sight of the disgruntled Weiss. Their friends plied them with questions about Jaune's miraculous recovery, but all the two would say was that it was a 'secret'. Ren shot them a look to tell them that he would be expecting a full explanation that very evening. Jaune simply confirmed his understanding with a nod.

* * *

><p>True to his word, as soon as team Juniper were alone in the dorm room with team RWBY having left for bed, he cornered the warrior couple.<p>

"So, now we're alone what happened to you? Nora and I saw you getting stretchered off with a huge chunk of metal sticking out of your leg. Then only a couple of hours later you burst through the dorm room door, change and leave like theirs a pack of rabid Beowolves on your tail! What happened?" Ren's voice rose steadily, laced with a mixture of confusion and frustration.

"R-Ren we're sorry we didn't explain earlier. Come to think of it, it's not gonna be easy to now. Basically when I was in the infirmary when the doc comes in and tells me it's going to be a few days before I'm back on my feet. I remember getting kinda frustrated and thinking I'd let Pyrrha down 'cause she wanted to compete in the partnership division. From what I understand my aura flared up and it hurt like hell. But when it died down again my leg was good as new. In a weird way my aura flares up when I get angry or frustrated. It happened with Cardin in forever fall and again today."

Ren was silent as Jaune finished his explanation. For all his studies in the field of aura he had done in the effort to master his own, this was the first example he had heard of someone's emotions bolstering their aura and even manipulating it.

"And how did you feel afterwards?" he asked.

"Like a million Lien! Well, I was a little tired but otherwise I felt great."

Ren gave a satisfied nod and made his way into their dorm's en-suite bathroom, for is nightly shower. Nora listened to their story wide-eyed before she leapt back onto her bed and put on her custom headphones, her orange hair bobbing along with her music.

"We did it!" Jaune gave a grin to his partner.

"Yes we did, together." she took his hand in hers as though to emphasise her point.

"Together." he replied.

Leaning in, the Knight lightly pressed his lips to those of the 'Invincible Girl'. The awkwardness that had been present at first was only a distant memory, the two seemed to become one being flowing seamlessly together. His hands upon her hips and her arms wrapped around his neck, and for the two of them it couldn't be more perfect.

The Sword and Spear broke their kiss and looked one another in the eye as Ren emerged from the bathroom followed by a cloud of steam.

"I suppose we had best get ready for bed, it's been a long day." Pyrrha said and gave him a peck on the nose before heading into the bathroom to shower.

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><p>Jaune and Pyrrha lay in their bed that night, a tangle of limbs. Her head lay on his chest listening to his heart beating as was the usual, and he rested his chin on her head, burying his face in her voluminous red hair. It was a simple arrangement they had, but neither of them would have it any other way.<p>

"Pyrrha?" Jaune's voice broke the silence, but Pyrrha didn't mind.

"Yes Jaune?"

"D-do you think I'm ready for the Vytal tournament?"

"Jaune, we qualified didn't we? We earned our place, the same as anyone else."

"I-it's just I don't wanna drag you down y'know?"

"Jaune, there is no-one I would rather have by my side in this tournament. I don't care if we lose, that's not what it's about. We will compete side by side and win or lose, we will do it side by side."

Jaune kissed her head, whether she knew it or not, the Champion always knew exactly what to say to calm his nerves or bolster his confidence. They faded back into their comfortable silence, the sounds of their conversations replaced by the steady rhythm of their breathing. It slowed and became more relaxed as the two fell into their respective dreams.

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><p><strong>I hope you enjoyed the chapter more than I did writing it. I'll be taking a bit of a harsher stance towards Jaune most likely in the next few chapters, i think the way I've written him is a tad OP. Anyway next chapter should be out soon. As always please do follow, favourite and Review. It's you guys that keep this going so thank you all. Feel free to flame review the hell out of this one, I'll probably join in.<strong>

**POLL RESULTS:**

**ARKOS-18**

**ROSEARC-13**

**JAUNExCOCO-8**

**WHITEKNIGHT(WeissxJaune)-3**

**Keep voting, only four options remain, and only a week and a half left to vote! I've begun plotting and I'm excited to get going. This one will be a warm up act in comparison i think. So yeah Please vote for your preferred ships. I aim to please you guys so vote for what you'd like. VOTE! VOTE! VOTE! Poll is linked through my profile.**

**This is TheFlagshipArkos and I'll see you all in the next chapter.**


	14. Sleepless Knights

**Hello once again! Welcome to a chapter I'm genuinely happy with for once. It's a tad shorter than normal so sorry for that. So it seems you guys don't mind my mildly OP Jaune which is awesome, I'll still be toning his powers down a little but on the whole I don't shan't be changing anything too dramatically. I will apologise for the longer delay between this and the last chapter, but I'm trying to slow down and put more time and effort into my fic both for my own enjoyment in writing it and for your enjoyment as readers. Finally I really want to thank you all for your support, it's been phenomenal. We've just broken 100 favourites and 20,000 views which is miles above what I hoped for when I started, so thank you all. Please enjoy.**

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><p><em>Jaune stood on cold stone in the centre of the wide open arena lit by bright floodlights, the stands were packed to bursting and the crowds chanting his name. He raised his sword to the sky and they all went wild, the sound was phenomenal, reverberating in his chest. His red headed partner sat in the front row of the stands just behind him Cheering wildly along with the faceless people around her. The sky above the arena was black as pitch, the usual stars and shattered moon were completely absent giving it an empty look that made Jaune feel ever so small and insignificant.<em>

_ He turned to face his opponent, a young faunus boy with shaggy black hair and two pointed fangs protruding over his bottom lip. His face was contorted into a feral snarl and his beady black eyes were full of malice. He seemed to be unarmed and unprotected by armour,preferring to use his natural agility._

_ The boy readied himself holding his arms out wide baring his claws. Jaune knew this boy would be trying to claw him to shreds at the first available opportunity. The look of hatred he exuded sent a shiver down the blonde's spine and filled him with dread._

_ Jaune raised his shield and settled into his usual combat stance._

_ 'remember Jaune, slow your breathing, shoulders back. Right foot forward, not too far now. Now wait for the opportune moment.'_

_ The faunus boy sprinted at him with surprising speed, barely leaving him with enough time to raise his shield, the faunus collided with a grunt and bounced off. He tried this tactic over and over, each time Jaune shield bashed him away earning a roar from the crowd._

_ The boys attitude and bearing changed suddenly, his face twisted into a smirk. Jaune eyed him suspiciously and circled him looking for an opening he could exploit when the Faunus charged him again. _

_ Rather than running straight he jumped about from left to right, a black aura flaring around him as he split into three, they ran circles around him. Jaune struggled to keep tabs on them all, his eyes darting from one to the next frantically. All at once the clones dissipated into black clouds and drifted away._

_Jaune desperately looked around trying to find hiss opponent when he caught a flicker of motion out of the corner of his eye. He turned but was too late, the boy was already past his guard. He leapt onto Jaune and clambered up the Knight's body ignoring frantic and flailing attempts to throw him off._

_ The blonde howled in pain as he felt the two sharp fangs sink into his shoulder, with a final heave Jaune caught hold of the faunus and threw him to the ground. In a rage he drew up Crocea Mors and brought the tip down into the boy's throat. A gurgling sound came from the young Faunus as he tried to breathe._

_ The spectators gasped in horror as Jaune retrieved his blade with a sickening squelch and blood sprayed from the boys throat coating the grey stone in the slick red of his life essences. The faunus' body contorted as he scrabbled at his torn jugular trying desperately to cling onto life, before he collapsed and gurgled softly on the floor amidst an ever growing pool of his blood._

_ Jaune turned away in guilt, unable to witness that which he had sown. The image of the boy dying on the floor, blood flowing all too freely from the tatters of what remained of his neck. He hadn't meant to kill, never kill._

_ The same gurgling became a twisted laughter and as Jaune watched in horror, the boy's form shifted. The crowed cheered wildly at the sight of the boy changing, and coming back for a second round. He became a solid mass of scraggly black fur and grew tall, taller that seven men stacked atop one another. Two long curved horns grew from its head and the face morphed. The fangs receded and were replaced by those of a human. The nose became elongated and slightly more bulbous. The angry black eyes shifted into emotionless blue, and the hair changed to a greying blonde. The face was familiar to Jaune, all to familiar. It was his great-grandfather Charlemagne Arc. The same hero depicted on the Beacon statue._

_ "You stand here carrying __**my**__ sword, but you are not worthy!"_

_Jaune could do little more than mumble a vague response._

_ "SILENCE BOY! You are weak! Undeserving of the family name! Relying on the charity of others to pull you through, you dare call yourself an Arc and my kin?"_

_The knight felt his blood boil at his grandfather's onslaught. His words struck at Jaune's very core, the parts of himself that he himself questioned on a daily basis. In his anger his aura flared dangerously, brilliant white but tinged with crimson around the edges._

_ He tightened his grip on his sword in his frustration, the blade glowing red with the savage delight of battle and surrounded by white mist as though it were ablaze as he channelled aura into it. On an impulse he charged his demonic grandfather, a harsh war-cry tore from his lips as he brought his family's longsword down with all of his might._

_ The monster's finger shot out to meet it as he deflected it as though it were a toothpick. In a flowing motion it brought its hand back round and grasped Jaune's head in its palm. Once again Jaune Howled in pain. Charlemagne swung the Knight around in a wide motion and angled to smash his head open like a watermelon against the cold, hard blood stained floor of the arena._

_ Jaune slashed wildly at the beast's arm in a desperate attempt to break free of its grasp but to no avail. His eyes widened as he flew ever faster towards the ground, bracing himself for impact he spared one last thought for his team and partner and silently apologised. His head connected._

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><p>Jaune bolted upright in bed with a shout, breathing heavily and coated in sweat. His hands were trembling and tears streamed down his cheeks. It took him a few moments to calm himself before his hands flew to his shoulder searching for any signs of the faunus boy's bite. He gave a relaxed sigh when he found none.<p>

_'It was just a dream, a horrific dream...'_

He felt a pair of soft and slender hands gently grasp his shoulders and begin to massage them soothingly, followed by a familiar voice in his ear.

"J-Jaune? Are you alright?"

Turning towards its source he found the familiar calming emerald eyes of his partner and girlfriend Pyrrha. Her eyes held the same concern that her voice had only moments before.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. J-just a bad dream is all."

His voice trembled in a way she had never heard it do before. Yet perhaps more disconcerting for her was the genuine look of horror and abject fear in his eyes. She drew him into her arms and lightly kissed him on his cheek.

The two of them sat together in companionable silence, the shattered moon had nearly completed its trip across the sky when the two of them finally resettled into sleep. Jaune hadn't been sleeping well since their Vytal qualifier match, no matter how hard he tried to ignore the thought he had the lingering feeling he would only let his partner down. Both he and Pyrrha had stepped their training up a notch at his request but he never felt anywhere near good enough.

It was these thoughts that plagued him, preventing him from gaining any real rest each night. He lay awake whilst his thoughts battled it out. He had tried to slow his breathing and empty his mind but it had little effect, his concentration would break and all of his fears would come rushing back to meet him.

Even if he did sleep, his thoughts would manifest themselves into deformed and demonic versions of his closest friends and family to cast aspersions on him. Though he never truly gave up, his force of will was severely diminished. He knew he would have to win the tournament to prove his own doubts wrong.

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><p>Jaune found the tournament's build-up to be nigh on unbearable. His longer days training with Pyrrha were followed only by his sleepless nights. He found himself utterly exhausted and falling asleep in his lectures, falling behind on classwork.<p>

It was lunch when things finally reached tipping point. Halfway through his meal Jaune felt his eyes fall heavy, accepting the warm embrace of sleep he closed them only to wake with a start a moment later as his face slammed into the solid wooden surface of the table.

Pyrrha had leapt forward in an attempt to save him from injury but had been too late. There was a resounding crack followed by a low groan as his nose connected and broke. He groggily sat back up, blood pouring down his face. In his exhaustive state he couldn't summon the energy to draw forth his aura to fix the damage.

Next he knew he was dragged away from the table and down the hallways by the Spartan. Without the strength to resist, leaving him to simply stagger along behind her. She dragged him back to the residential block and into their dorm room, from there into the small attached bathroom where she sat him on the toilet lid and retrieved their room's first aid kit.

With a stern expression she blocked his nose with two tufts of cotton wool and cleaned his face of blood. She placed a hand on his shoulders and through the use of her own, activated his aura. With the sound of crunching bone and cartilage his nose straightened out, his aura kicking in to heal him.

Satisfied he was fixed up she dragged him back towards his bed and half threw, half laid him onto it. When he sluggishly tried to regain his feet she simply pushed him back again.

"Jaune you are exhausted. You're not sleeping, you barely eat. So for the rest of today you're going to sleep, rest and recuperate. This is non-negotiable, clear?"

"What about lessons? We can't afford to fall any further behind." he said weakly.

"Ren has it covered. He says we can make use of his notes when you're up to it."

Jaune was astounded at how well organised this all was. He knew that his team had noticed a deterioration in his state but he hadn't noticed just how bad it had been. Seeing the look of determination on his partner's face he figured he had better make the best of a bad situation and so he closed his eyes, and found a comfortable spot.

He tossed and turned trying and re-trying to find a comfortable position and to quieten his mind but found it impossible. His head had become a raging battleground for his thoughts as his confidence and paranoia fought for control behind his eyes.

A sudden sensation on his head shattered the image before him, the swirling tempest of his thoughts calming. The sensation moved back slowly but surely, opening his eyes he saw Pyrrha's smiling face. She was running her hand through his hair.

Though she didn't know it Pyrrha was matching exactly what his Mom had done whenever he couldn't sleep. There was something oddly therapeutic about his partner's hands running through his hair that granted him a sense of inner peace and calm he had been lacking. His Mom had the same kind of affect, although she was somewhat more rough going about it than the Champion.

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><p>Jaune drifted back to consciousness with a wide yawn to the smell of fresh pancakes and a constrictive feeling on his chest. In the background he could hear the sound of pans clattering in their kitchenette and Nora chatting annimatedly. He slowly cracked open his eyes to find a mass of red hair resting on his chest, he looked adoringly at her, gently twirling a few strands of her voluminous hair in between his fingers. He was still tired to an extent, although nowhere near as much as he had been before his nap. He reached into his pocked and retrieved his scroll, it read five thirty.<p>

Before long Nora came bounding out of their team's kitchenette with two plates piled high with pancakes, one for each of the sleepers. Pyrrha's were topped with fresh strawberries, the Champion's favourite of all the fruits, and drizzled with cream. Just how she liked. Jaune's were topped with his own favourite of bananas and lightly dusted with cinnamon.

"Well hi there Jauney you ol' sleepy head!" Nora grinned at him.

Jaune lightly shook his partner awake and laughed at the small damp patch on his t-shirt where her head had been moments before. She blushed feverishly and drew a hand across her mouth, effectively removing all signs of the drool train that had been running down her chin.

"Thank you Nora, and thanks Ren!" there came a faint confirmation from the kitchen.

Without further ado both J and P dug into their pancakes. Jaune felt somewhat rejuvenated after his nap, his brain not feeling quite as mushy as it had before, although he knew he would likely need another good sleep that night.

Once they had finished their food and tidied away their dishes (Ren insisted that he didn't mind cooking for his team provided they clear away their own plates.) Jaune turned to his partner and kissed her lightly upon the lips, they tasted of strawberries and cream bringing back memories of the summer.

"W-what was that for?" She asked, surprised.

"For looking out for me, as always. I needed that nap and you made it happen. If it weren't for you I'd have run myself into the ground."

She nodded modestly, her cheeks flaring up a little as she did.

"It wasn't just me, it was Ren and Nora too."

Jaune returned his attention to his teammates.

"Thank you both." his cerulean eyes held every ounce of sincerity and gratitude he could muster.

"Jauney, relax! That's what teammates are for!" Nora replied exuberantly.

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><p>Evening rolled around quickly for Jaune and his team, with it being Thursday the team spent their evening together in their dorm room for 'Thursday Team Time'. It had become something of a tradition since their formation that every Thursday evening team Juniper would spend some time together as a team, provided that they weren't off on an assignment. It gave them a chance to kick back and relax, as well as developing their bonds. For Jaune and Pyrrha it meant a night off from training and for Nora and Ren it marked an end to their frantic dashes to finish homework, at least for a day.<p>

Jaune and Pyrrha made their way into the kitchenette and retrieved several bottles of Duster Pepper and bags of varying snacks which they set out on their shared desk. They brought out their collapsible table and chairs as well as a pack of cards and set about their quiet evening in...well about as quiet as can be with the hyperactive Valkyrie.

They soon settled into a tense game of 'go fish'. Jaune and Pyrrha watched with some amusement as Nora and Ren stared each other down. It always devolved into this when they played competitive games against one another.

Despite that there was something greater at stake, the last of the doughnuts. It was jam filled, Nora's favourite, and the winner of the next hand won it. So for Nora it was a live or die moment. Ren was down to his last card whilst Nora had three.

"Got any threes?"

Nora asked in a slow and suspicious voice. Her blue eyes never left Ren's pink ones. Ren paused pensively before he shrugged and leaned in. With a smug grin on his face he replied.

"Go fish."

She drew a card from the stack.

"Any fours" Ren continued.

Nora's eyes grew wide as she looked down at her own hand, before dejectedly handing over a four. His face in its usual passive state Ren set down his two cards to reveal a pair of fours.

"And I have won Nora."

With a chuckle he retrieved his prize and with a smile broke it in half handing one half to the Valkyrie. She gave a cheer and snatched it up, gobbling it down at a speed even Ruby would struggle to beat.

Jaune checked his scroll, it was eleven thirty. Seeing the time overcame the effects that the copious amounts of sugar had had on his body and he yawned wide. He stood and made his way off to the bathroom retrieving his rabbit onesie on the way. Once his teeth were brushed and he was in the familiar cosy confines of his blue pyjamas he shuffled over and climbed into bed, shuffling as far over to one side as its confines would allow.

Pyrrha shut off the dorm's lights on her way out of the bathroom. Moments later Jaune felt her familiar form climb in next to him with the sound of rustling sheets. She took her usual place besides him, her head on his chest and her slim body wrapped up in his arms.

He kissed her upon the lips, tasting the fresh mint of her toothpaste. He felt her smile and deepen their kiss, her tongue against his own and playfully wrestling for dominance. Jaune wasn't one to be defeated however and began a clumsy counter attack which was quickly disarmed by his partner.

He pulled away and heard her giggle. Opening his eyes he found himself staring straight into hers. They seemed to reflect the pale light the moon was giving out, highlighting their emerald tone and making them all the more alluring. The Knight felt as though he could look into them forever, tracing their every detail.

The champion lay her head back on his chest, watching its steady rise and fall.

"Goodnight Jaune, sleep well" she whispered.

"Goodnight Pyrrha, I love you." He ran a hand through her flowing red hair as he spoke, brushing stray strands out of her face.

Giving into his fatigue, Jaune embraced the warm arms of sleep and drifted without disturbance into the seas of his subconscious.

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><p><strong>There it was, hope you enjoyed that.<strong>

**I'll most likely be cutting back on updates to just one a week as I look to start writing another based on the poll results. Please do review, it helps me improve and provide what it is that you, the reader, wants. Please follow and favourite to help build TheFlagshipArkos crew.**

**POLL UPDATE:**

**ARKOS-20**

**ROSEARC-15**

**JAUNExCOCO-11**

**I'll be closing the poll in just 24 hours, so now truly is your last chance to cast your votes. let the games begin.**

**I'll see you all again in the next chapter.**


	15. POLL RESULTS (for those interested)

**UPDATE: 12/12/14**

**POLL RESULTS:**

**ARKOS:25**

**ROSEARC:19**

**JAUNExCOCO:11**

And there you have it fans! After two weeks of voting we have the conclusive numbers. You voted for Arkos as the next ship (thank you all). First chapter should be out soon and will likely be mostly canon to begin with so watch this space for news of that. Thank you to all who voted and I'll see you all in the next chapter.


	16. The Vytal Tournament

**Hello to you all once again! I present unto you all the latest chapter! I will say one thing, and that is I see the Vytal tournament as lasting two days, one day per division, I appologise before hand if this isn't in-depth enough but I'm trying to get past this arc in preparation for a 'Dustmas arc'. Cliche I know but it shall be touching I hope, please enjoy.**

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><p>Jaune awoke on the morning of the Vytal tournament and eagerly leapt out of bed. He stretched out his muscles before heading into their team's bathroom and having a cold shower. He suppressed a cry as he leapt into the freezing jet of water. He shivered as he scrubbed himself from head to toe, despite how uncomfortable the experience was the water did have the desired effect, he was certainly wide awake.<p>

He shot back into the dorm room and over to the closet to retrieve his clothes. He pulled out his newest set of jeans and his 'lucky' hoodie, complete with hood tear and ominous purple stains that simply refused to wash out completely and stood out against the rest of the faded material. He strapped on top of it his familiar plate armour and around his waist went the familiar weight of his family's treasured sword Crocea Mors.

Looking around he found that his team were still fast asleep. Even Nora was still engulfed in whatever vivid dream she was having. The Valkyrie had the single most adorable smile on her face as she lightly sucked the tip of her thumb, she would twitch every now and again, no doubt a result of the fierce battles she fought nightly against the Grimm in her dreams.

He made his way into the teams kitchenette for the final stages of his special preparation routine. Making his way over to their small fridge he retrieved some; bacon, eggs, sausages and the all important black pudding.

"Today is an important day, and I'm gonna kick it off in style!"

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><p>Pyrrha was torn from sleep by the shrill beeping of her scroll, with a groan she flung her arm out towards the sound hoping to grab it but grazed her knuckles against the corner of Jaune's bedside table. She cursed, her aura already setting in to heal the damage. Through her bleary vision she finally caught hold of her scroll after numerous attempts and shut off the alarm. From across the room came the groans and yawns of both Ren and Nora.<p>

She rolled back over hoping to snuggle back into her partners arms only to find him missing. It was then that the smell hit her, the smell of fresh bacon and eggs. Not long after Jaune emerged from the kitchenette carrying two plates piled high with food on two trays. Pyrrha didn't know how he was doing it but he had one balanced on each hand.

He carried them over and handed one tray to bot Nora and Ren with a smile before heading back towards the kitchen. On his way he caught Pyrrha's look, it was a mixture of both surprise and confusion. He simply favoured her with a grin and darted back into the kitchen again, a few moments later he came back out carrying another two trays. He danced his way over to the redhead and proffered up one of the trays, she took it with a smile and looking down at her breakfast found that he had arranged her meal into the shape of a large heart.

"Jaune, if you get any sweeter I think you'll cause me cavities." She chuckled, giving him a light kiss and dug in.

Jaune was a master in the kitchen it seemed, the bacon was cooked to perfection, not too dry and crispy but also not underdone, he had hit that perfect middle ground. The sausages were evenly cooked and simply melted in the mouth.

Once his team had finished their breakfast and the plates had been cleared away the NPR of Juniper took their respective turns in the bathroom and came out prepared for the tournament later that day. The moment Nora was ready (for she always takes the longest out of the four) they made for the door and down to the sky-docks for their flight into Vale and the subsequent trip to the city's tournament arena.

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><p>Vale was packed out despite the fact the tournament wasn't due to start for nigh on n hour. It was no secret that hundreds upon hundreds of people had been arriving sporadically in the build up to the tournament, all of Vale's hotels, motels and hostels were fully booked up and it showed.<p>

The streets of Vale teemed with life as the countless numbers of people flocked in droves in the general direction of the stadium. The roar of the crowds could be heard blocks away. The atmosphere within the city had changed dramatically from the usual calm and docile to the pure super-charged electrified excitement that the Vytal tournament provided.

Team Juniper made their way through the crowds to the stadium and through its huge doors, following signs they shifted into a line for competitors and up towards a grouchy looking older man in a black t-shirt labelled 'event staff' holding a clipboard.

"Name?" He demanded in a gruff and altogether fed up manner.

"Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren, Nora Valkyrie and Jaune Arc of Team JNPR." Jaune replied.

The old man ran a finger down the list on his clipboard moving through sheet after sheet of names, he paused when he found their names, briefly checking their photographs against the genuine article he stepped aside to allow them past.

"Partnership division, down the hallway and third doorway on the left." he pointed. Team Juniper nodded collectively and made their way down the hall following his instructions, the opened the door and found themselves in a lounge/locker room with a large group of their fellow competitors. Each wearing distinguishing T-shirts from their respective kingdom, the only ones that weren't were those from Vale being the home team.

For the most part the students of the four kingdoms refrained from mingling, and sat divided. The irony of a tournament designed to bring all four kingdoms together in a show of peace and prosperity.

Jaune led his team to Vale's corner and sat amongst the various teams on the plush sofas. There were several faces which he recognised including those from team CRDL. RWBY were absent as just two days before they had been told they couldn't compete in both divisions and had to decide between either one of the other. As a result all of team RWBY had elected to fight in the individual tournament later that week. Pyrrha had decided to fight with Jaune since he had been disqualified from the singles and still wanted to compete. Ren and Nora both saw their way to entering together as they fought far better together than they ever did alone, seamlessly working together as only a lifelong friendship can allow.

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><p>Before long the teams were being called up and one team at a time the lounge emptied itself. Jaune and Pyrrha were called up by event staff at around noon. They made their way up and into the tunnel, following it along they emerged into the arena to be met by the roar of the crowds. The stands were full to the point of bursting, the whole city was seemingly turned out to witness the preliminary matches, intrigued to see who would end up representing who.<p>

The two partners paced their way towards the centre of the cold stone of the arena, it was marred with the signs of the previous battles, charring here, a small splash of blood there as well as a series of hefty cracks scratches from the more ferocious battles. Television cameras hovered above the main enclosure and off to the sides, live streaming to both the world and the huge television screens around the arena.

"And there they are folks! Representing Beacon and the illustrious kingdom of Vale; The world famed Pyrrha Nikos, four time champion of Mistral, that's four times folks and no mean feat! Accompanying the 'Invincible girl' is her partner and team leader Jaune Arc! The man descended from renowned huntress and hero Charlemagne Arc! Can he live up to his legacy? Together they form Team Arkos! Give it up!"

Jaune had to give it to the commentator, he certainly knew how to get a crowd all fired up even after a lengthy morning of matches. He shot a sidelong glance at his partner and smiled.

"Did you come up with the name?" He asked.

"Yes, do you like it?"

"Yeah, I don't know why but it just feels...right, y'know?" he laughed.

Pyrrha smiled, glad that her leader had accepted her choice of name. Though her thoughts were cut short as the announcer called out once again to introduce their opponents, team Arkos busied themselves with readying their weapons. They side-by-side, shields drawn forming a solid wall of metal between them and their foes.

"From Atlas, Team Cloak and Dagger!" the announcer cried.

Across the arena stood two figures concealed under heavy black cloaks, one held a glaive. Its haft was a full five feet long with a bladed spike protruding from its back end, on the other was fixed the blade itself. It was cruel looking with a serrated edge and a long curved blade adding a further foot to the weapon's overall length.

The figures partner had drawn his own weapons, two scuffed and chipped wooden handles, attached onto the end were link upon link of black chains which wound their way to two serrated axe heads, made of a bright golden metal and gleaming in a fiendish light that made Jaune all the more nervous.

"Any ideas Pyrrha?" He whispered nervously.

"You take the one with the glaive and I'll handle the other. Lets see how he handles my semblance." She smiled mischievously. "Just stay close to me."

Jaune nodded and turned his attention to the huge holographic projection ahead of them, it matched the one set behind him. Upon it were the head shots of both himself and Pyrrha as well as those of their opponents although their foes retained their hoods it seemed and their faces remained obscured. Below their head shots were the usual tournament style aura gauges.

Jaune watched the screen as the three starting lights appeared. The first amber lit up. On the second he tightened his grip on Crocea Mors. He uttered a silent prayer for both himself and his partner. And then it was go time, the final light appeared green.

Before he could even react Jaune was struck and sent flying across the arena. He landed on his back driving the precious air from his lungs and leaving him gasping like a fish out of water. He struggled to sit up to find his opponent. To his horror he saw both cloaked fighters unleashing hell in the form of swinging blades upon his partner.

Jaune staggered to his feet and stumbled over to the fray, his lungs burning. From his position, neither of the fighters would see him coming he realised. With a determined look in his eyes he crept his way forward until he was mere feet behind the cloaked assailants.

He gave a savage cry and leapt up onto the one armed with axe flails, raising his sword he repeatedly slashed and stabbed down at his involuntary mount, grunts and groans came from below him as the cloaked figure's aura flared up to protect him.

With a final buck and heave a cloaked arm caught Jaune by his hoodie and, with a yank, pulled him up and off of his shoulders. Jaune collided once again with the cold stone of the arena floor stars flew in front of his very eyes on impact he lost his grip on his weapons and through his pained head he heard them clatter off in the distance.

Above him he caught a glint of malice beneath the shadows of his foe's hood as he began to flourish his bladed flails building momentum. In anguish Jaune looked around for any method of escape but could find none. His sword lay just out of reach and he shield was even further away. His enemy raised the two flails together forming two spinning wheels of death, with a final flourish he brought them up and around to strike the final blow.

Jaune felt the familiar hilt of his sword meet his gloved palm, looking over he found it surrounded in the black aura that marked his partners semblance. The Knight grasped the blade with both hands and swung with all of his might.

Time seemed to slow down as the sword's blade connected with the torso of the cloak in a blinding flash of green light as his enemy's aura flared up to stop the hit. Jaune was blinded, his vision blacked out save for odd blotches of colour which danced around. He heard a loud metallic clang and a dull thump as a body hit the deck next to him, the audience gasped in collective shock. Off in the distance the sounds of metal on metal still rang out as his partner battled on.

Just as his vision returned there came the sound of the finishing klaxon and a triumphant roar from the crowds, he looked up through bleary eyes to see the screen, his aura gauge was in the dark orange, roughly one hit more would have driven him into the red. Both of the cloaked fighters were into the red, even Pyrrha had taken sizeable aura damage finding herself in the yellow.

* * *

><p>The moment the green light showed Pyrrha had set off at a run towards the flail-wielder, he flourished and swung at her, she ducked behind her shield. The flail hit her shield and glanced off in a shower of sparks, spurred on she closed the gap and launched a series of well executed slashes across her opponent's body.<p>

Her battle seemed to be going well, she had her foe on the defensive and was landing strike after strike with little opposition, his flails being rendered useless this close. It was just then that the hair on the back of her neck prickled. After years of combat experience, Pyrrha had learned to trust her instincts. She dove to the left and rolled, settling back into a low crouch.

Just in time it seemed as a glaive sliced through the air where her head had been just moments before. She managed to shoot a brief worried glance in Jaune's direction before the tables turned and she was forced onto the defensive, switching Miló into its javelin form to better serve her multi-fronted defence.

Dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodge were the only five things on the Champion's mind as she struggled to maintain her defences. The battle had ceased to be thought out or strategic for her, it was only a case of acting and reacting to avoid harm. Yet despite her valiant efforts she simply couldn't avoid all of the attacks directed at her. A scrape on the leg here, a hit to the arm there. It all began to add up and take its toll. Something had to change.

If there was a god watching her from above he heard her prayers, from out of nowhere came Jaune, he leapt up and onto one of her assailants, ferociously and admittedly comically, slashing and stabbing away at him like a mad-man leaving only the glaive-wielder for her to have to deal with.

With a smirk on confidence she switched Miló back into its Xiphos state and charged. She closed the gap and rendered her opponent's defences ineffective. The glaive-wielder desperately back-pedalled frantically trying to put distance between himself and the champion only to be met with the biting edge of her red and gold sword.

Out of the corner of her eye Pyrrha caught a glimpse of Jaune being brutally slammed into the ground, his weapons flying away from his grasp. A pit of worry and fear welled up inside of her as she had no choice but to watch the flail-wielder make one final flourish. In desperation she lunged out into a roll and dug deep for her semblance. Focusing upon a mental image of the Knight's familiar sword she reached out with her aura and launched the weapon towards his hand.

Before she could see the results of her efforts her foe was upon her once again, bearing down with a flurry of jabs and slashes that even the 'Invincible Girl' was hard pressed to avoid. She silently commended her opponent on the mastery of his chosen weaponry.

A blinding flash of green light shone out from behind the champion blinding the hooded glaive-wielder. Seizing her opportunity she lashed out with a vicious kick hitting her foe's leg, it broke with a loud snap earning an empathetic groan from the crowd. Following her kick she shifted up knocking his remaining leg out and taking him to the ground. Quick as a wink Miló was raised, the blade hovering a mere half-inch from her concealed foe's chest and ready to plunge in at a moment's notice.

The klaxon sounded and the crowd went nuts cheering and chanting, anything to show their overwhelming support for the victorious 'Team Arkos'. Pyrrha made a sound somewhere between a relieved sigh and laughter as she made her way over to her partner leaving the medical staff to take care of her Atlesian rival.

Jaune staggered upright, his vision still a little blurred and clumsily set about retrieving his weapons. Crocea Mors' familiar weight hanging from his hip once again he sighed and stretched his back. He practically leapt thirty feet in the air when a hand rested itself upon his shoulder. He wheeled around to find himself staring straight into the familiar emerald pools that were the eyes of one Pyrrha Nikos.

"W-we did it!" he proclaimed snatching her up into a bear hug and spinning her round in circles, inspiring another cheer from the crowd.

"Gah! Yes Jaune we did, now can you _please _put me down, before you break something." She gasped, struggling to breathe under the force of his affections. With a chuckle he set her down again.

"Pyrrha, I believe you saved my very life there. If you hadn't of put that sword in my hand, well, I doubt we'd be having this chat right now." He said, his expression taking on a more serious nature.

"Jaune that is what partners do, you did the same. By diving on one of their fighters like you did you granted me an opening to counter-attack."

"Well, regardless I feel like I let you down. I promise that for next time I will be better!" His eyes burned with renewed determination, just as she had seen during their nightly sparring sessions, and she knew he wouldn't give up until they were in the finals or he couldn't physically stand.

* * *

><p>That day was one of the longest and most difficult that the couple had ever had to face. They fought bout after bout with little time to recuperate in between. Countless teams stepped up to face them and each time they were knocked down by the combined might of 'Team Arkos'.<p>

In between matches they found themselves watching, and so it was that they saw the combined forces of team CRDL fall in the quarters and even the seamless efforts of 'Team Sloth' (Nora having provided the name) failed to hold up in the semi-finals, going out in a blazing loss complete with multi-coloured explosions and a hail of green dust-rounds.

Their opponents, two faunus from Vacuo had found that attacking in a head on assault had proven mostly ineffective and...incredibly painful if they ended up caught within the range of Magnhild. So they had settled for short and sharp hit and run attacks using their accentuated attributes to move in and out of harm's way from a multitude of different directions landing solid blows each time and sending the two lifelong friends onto the back foot.

To counter the attacks 'Sloth' had settled into a back-to-back, all round defence. Yet even then they had trouble avoiding attacks, with a resigned nod both had launched a scathing barrage of bullets and grenades completely emptying their payloads into the arena around them occasionally landing a lucky hit but otherwise missing and tearing chunks out of the arena floor. In one final, brutal attack the two faunus ran forward and in a flurry of well aimed punches and kicks disarmed and lay the royal beat down upon the NR of Juniper.

Jaune and Pyrrha had run to the arena's entrance tunnel to meet their severely battered and bruised teammates. Ren had a hand rested on his partner's shoulder both to give support and for help in walking, given that he had quite a pronounced limp.

It was Nora's eyes that broke Jaune's heart however. The unfathomable blue was bereft of their usual high hopes and joviality and were instead resigned and held a crushing disappointment. Her smile was gone, exchanged for a grimace although from pain of frustration Jaune simply couldn't tell.

"We did our best Nora, and that's all we can do. You had them running scared." Ren spoke slowly, trying to comfort the Valkyrie.

"I-I did?" She asked, her smile returning.

"Yeah! We could see the fear in their eyes from where we were watching!" Jaune replied, jumping on the bandwagon and receiving a subtle look of thanks from the team stoic.

"Well there we have it folks! After a thrilling day of matches between the finest teams the four kingdoms have to offer we have our finalists! The team you know and love, local favourites, Pyrrha Nikos and Jaune Arc of Vale! And their fierce contenders, the gruesome twosome themselves, the faunus brothers from Vacuo! Cacajao and Alces Capulet! Would our two finalist teams please retire to the preparation lounge and ready themselves for today's grand final!"

'Team Arkos' gave a nod to their teammates and began to walk off when a solid hand grasped at Jaune pulling him back.

"Jauney! Grind them into dust!" Nora had a cold look in her eyes above her usual smile, a chilling sight to see. Jaune clapped her on the shoulder.

"You got it!" he winked.

"Be careful, keep your guard up." Ren advised.

The Valkyrie released him and the two made their way through into the now empty preparation lounge.

Despite his reassurances of imminent victory to his hyperactive teammate Jaune wasn't feeling all that confident. Throughout the day he had fought to the very limits of his abilities but seeing his own teammates picked apart by their next opponents had brought an element of realism to him. He and his partner had both qualified through a mixture of skill and blind luck for the finals of the Vytal tournament's partnership division, which was something that gave him a feeling of immense pride.

He knew that back home his family would be watching with bated breath and every available extremity crossed for him, and he prayed he would not disappoint. A young woman in an 'event staff' T-shirt came to collect them before long and sent them on their path down the tunnel.

"Good luck guys, give 'em hell!" She grinned to them.

Both fighters walked slowly and in silence, each preparing themselves mentally for what was about to go down. It was Jaune who broke the silence.

"Win or lose, I'm glad to have you fighting by my side partner." He looked straight ahead to the ever growing portal of light. She paused, grasping him by the shoulder and turning him to face her, her intense emerald eyes boring into his very soul.

"I'm incredibly proud of you Jaune. You've come a long way since Forever fall. Now let's get out there and give our new fans a fight worthy of the record books." Hey eyes lit up with determination and excitement of the kind only the adrenaline rush of battle could provide. As a final gesture she kissed him, a brief yet wholly reassuring contact. He gave her a quizzical look.

"For luck." She shrugged. "Now lets get out there, the crowds are getting restless."

And so they were, from the end of the tunnel they could hear chanting, the crowds were actively chanting their names. The two fighters locked hands and made their way out onto the floodlit stone of the arena's enclosure to the deafening roar of the crowds.

Looking around Jaune caught sight of their friends and teammates in the front row of the stands just behind them. Nora beamed down at them and gave an energetic wave and thumbs-up to them from her seat next to a bandaged but smiling Ren.

Behind them sat a literal sea of Beacon hoodies and T-shirts as well as a number of hastily made signs on which were scribbled slogans like 'Arkos4Life' and 'Lets make it two champions!' To his absolute surprise, just behind their friends sat the combined faculty of Beacon; Port, Oobleck, Ozpin they were all there and smiling down at them. Even Goodwitch had a light smile on her face. In her hands she held a sign reading; 'Do it Arkos!' which made Jaune chuckle.

With the whole of Beacon's support at their back they turned their focus to their foes, Cacajao and Alces. They stood poised and ready a short distance from them eagerly awaiting the starting klaxon. The team from Beacon readied their weapons and watched, waiting.

The klaxon sounded and Jaune threw his arm into the air eliciting a roar from the crowds with a shout of;

"For Beacon!"

* * *

><p><strong>There you are! I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter. I'll be finishing up on the Vytal tournament next time I should think, or maybe the chapter after that ready for a Christmas special type thing. My second fic will most likely be getting posted sometime in January (giving myself some time off over Christmas). As always, follow favourite and review, all opinions are welcome.<strong>

**I'll see you all in the next chapter.**


	17. Two Champions

**I'm sorry if this seems rushed or brief. I'm doing my best to conclude the arc ASAP so I can give you guys a slightly more seasonal chapter arc. I hope you enjoy nonetheless, I present to you the conclusion of the tournament Arc!**

* * *

><p>Jaune disengaged and danced away from his opponent in a flash of sparks and the clash of metal. His foe Cacajao, a young Faunus from Vacuo, seemed much the same as he had when the fight began. He was still light on his feet and showed little sign of fatigue. His feline ears still stood bolt upright. Jaune however was a whole other story, his shield arm ached and his legs were numb. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead and into his eyes stinging and blinding him until his eyes were red.<p>

A short way away his partner appeared to be faring little better. Pyrrha was fighting ferociously but Alces seemed to have little trouble in contorting his body to avoid her strikes. Each time the Champion swung he would dodge, her sword biting into the air where he had just been.

The fight had been going on for just a little over ten minutes, and both members of 'team Arkos' were beginning to get a little rough around the edges. Careless movements allowed for the Faunus brothers to slip past their guard and land heavy hits, a kick here or a punch there, each strike wearing away at their aura. Something had to change.

Jaune waited for his opening and charged Cacajao with his shield held up. He clashed into the Faunus and took him to the ground. Using his shield to keep the Vacuan pinned and putting all his weight onto it he repeatedly pommel struck Cacajao about his head and shoulders to the roar of the crowds.

A searing pain suddenly tore its way across Jaune's. The Knight reared back scrabbling at the four burning lines across his face and howling in pain, his vision swimming. In a last moment of desperation Cacajao had lashed out with his claws and torn a path across the blonde's face. The moment he had reared back and the weight on his chest had disappeared the Cat Faunus had darted off to a distant part of the arena panting heavily.

Jaune's aura flared and a cooling sensation ran across the four angry scratches stemming the flow of blood and lacing his torn skin back together. With a gloved hand he wiped the blood from his face and looked around seeking to regain his bearings.. His opponent had fled some thirty feet away in front of him and was at last showing signs of wear and tear.

To his right some way away Pyrrha was fighting on. Her armour bore lines of deep scratches, resulting from a series of furious swipes with Alces' own claws. But she wasn't the only one to have been marked. Her animalistic opponent had a number of gashes, bot major and minor, across his body. His clothes having been reduced to near ribbons by the honed blade of Miló.

Casting a glance up at the screens Jaune was shocked. The aura gauges were weighted in their favour although only just. His onslaught had brought Cacajao down to the wrong side of yellow, his own reserves trailing not far behind. His partner was hovering in at around fifty percent and Alces was near exhausted.

With a renewed determination he drew himself up and dropped into his ready stance, he looked back to where Cacajao had been only moments before only to find an empty space. Alarmed, he looked to his partner, but she was still locked in battle with Alces. Jaune frantically looked from side to side but could find neither hair nor tail of his quarry.

It was then that a boot connected with the back of his head sending him sprawling to the cold, hard, stone floor. He groaned as every part of him flared up in angry protest at their respective mistreatment. His sword clattered away leaving him with only his shield. He struggled to his feet despite the shrieks of protest his body gave him and barely managed to duck out of the way of another incoming foot. He threw himself into a roll and put some distance between Cacajao and himself. Although moving him further and further from Crocea Mors.

He had little time to think, as the Faunus threw himself at the knight in a fearless flurry of kicks and punches. Using his shield the Knight deflected the blows although being steadily pushed back each subsequent his jarring his arm and sending it numb.

_'Do something! And fast!' _His mind implored him. He cast his eyes about for anything that might be of use. His gaze settled longingly on his sword, it was simply too far away. He needed something now.

As though by fate his eyes settled upon the Beacon supporter crowd and particularly the disapproving eyes of professor Goodwitch. She raised a hand to eye level and as he watched it began to glow purple as her aura was channelled into it. His vision blurred as a particularly harsh set of punches broke past his guard. When it cleared again Goodwitch had a perfect replica of her crop above her hand. It was foggy and glowed a purple light. Her eyes held an expectant look. It took another few moments and a couple more hits for his mind to piece it all together.

_'Of course! Jaune you idiot...' _He mentally berated himself for not thinking of it sooner.

He waited for Cacajao to attack. The faunus sent a flying knee towards Jaune's face at incredible speed but the blonde was ready. With a might heave and against the will of his bruised and battered body he shoved the Faunus with his shield and sent him tumbling to the floor.

Having granted himself a brief reprieve Jaune dashed a short distance away and fixed an image of Crocea Mors in his mind just like he had in Goodwitch's lesson all that time ago. Across from him his opponent began to get up. Jaune dug deep into his aura reserves and channelled as much as he deemed safe into his hand the air above his palm beginning to shimmer like a heat haze in the desert. Cacajao looked and him with a feral snarl and began running at him claws and teeth bared. The shimmering ceased as a hazy white glowing object began to form, taking shape and become more defined. The faunus increased his speed to one that would rival even Ruby, as he closed in for the kill, his eyes locked on the Knight's pensive face. Jaune mentally willed himself to work faster, all to aware of the boy closing in on him. With a shout of 'Aha!' his weapon was done, his eyes flickered open and he was tackled to the ground.

There was a moist squelching sound and a sound akin to that of rushing wind. The audience gasped and cried out in shock. Opening his eyes slowly Jaune found the feline-esque face of Cacajao next to his own, a pained look in his dilated eyes. Blood was pooling at an alarming rate around them but he knew it wasn't his own for he felt no pain besides the aches in his muscles.

With a cry of shock he caught a glimpse of his aura blade. It sprouted out a foot from the Faunus' back it was brilliant white and tinged with a deep red. Jaune released the grip on his aura and it dissipated coaxing a grunt from Cacajao. He rolled his once fierce opponent off of him and climbed to his knees to assess the damages.

Cacajao had a large wound left in his chest from where Crocea Auras had sliced through. It was a clean cut and it was oozing the boy's life essences at an alarming rate, Cacajao's aura being too low to staunch the bleeding on its own. Jaune knew he had to do something.

He cast aside his shield and armour, the white metal besmirched and stained red with blood. Once he had shed his only protection he pulled his hoodie off, scrunching it up he pressed it to the would and applied as much pressure as he physically could. Looking off towards his partner he saw both fighters looking in their direction. Alces with a look of horror whilst Pyrrha seemed to wear that of grim acceptance.

The Klaxon went to signal the end of the match. The paramedics came sprinting over to Jaune the moment it was declared safe to do so. The forced the Knight out of the way in their rush to begin work on the boy. The lifted him onto a stretcher and threw the blood-soaked hoodie aside exchanging it for medical dressings before rushing him off to an awaiting ambulance. A dazed Alces running after in hot pursuit.

The arena was deathly silent for a minute after the injured fighter was rushed out, before breaking into cheers. Jaune remained sat on the floor in a pool of blood unsure of what to feel. Guilt welled up inside him as tears rolled down his cheeks.

"There it is folks! In a shocking conclusion 'Team Arkos' are victorious! The partnership division Vytal Champions are Pyrrha Nikos and Jaune Arc of Beacon!"

Jaune felt a firm hand clasp his shoulder. He looked up to find the worried eyes of his partner staring straight back at him. With a wry smile she pulled him to his feet and drew him in. No words were necessary, nor were there any he wanted to hear. He just stood there in her arms.

"I've just been told ladies and gentleman that the paramedics have indeed stabilised young Cacajao and he is likely to pull through."

The crowd cheered once again and Jaune breathed an audible sigh of relief. The champion waved to the crowd before leading Jaune to collect his weapons and make their way out of the arena. The walked in absolute silence down the tunnel to the competitor's lounge, Jaune's stomach churned.

Pyrrha set him helped him over to one of the couches, before she could set him down he broke free of her and ran for the nearest bathroom. Pyrrha reached out to him but he was already gone. Even from outside the bathroom she could hear him heaving violently, it lasted for a solid five minutes until he emerged once again. His hands were shaking as he wiped his mouth on the back of his hand. He locked eyes with her, the look in his eyes made her want to cuddle up with him and tell him it would all be alright. He sighed, he wanted to celebrate but the final's events had cast a damper on their victory.

"J-Jaune it wasn-"

"I nearly killed him Pyrrha... I ran him through and he nearly died..."

"Jaune it was a tournament, things like this happen in tournaments. He knew the risks when he signed up."

"She is right Mr. Arc." Goodwitch's voice rang out through the lounge. Jaune wheeled around to find what looked like the whole of Beacon pouring through the doors.

"But Professor I..."  
>"No buts. You managed to complete a complex aura manipulation exercise in an extremely short span of time and then use it effectively in combat. Whilst it is unfortunate that your opponent was seriously harmed you shouldn't blame yourself. There was nothing you could have done."<p>

She gave Jaune a soft smile as she looked at him. She stepped aside. Ren and Nora walked up to the new champion and proffered up a crumpled and screwed up ball of cloth.

"Jaune we thought you might be wanting your lucky hoodie back." explained Ren.

Jaune took the piece of clothing and examined it. It was still damp with blood and would need a good wash. He ran his fingers along the edges of the rift in the hood, the hole that marked the start of the greatest friendship he had ever been fortunate enough to have.

His eyes filled with tears again as he looked upon all of their friends gathered in support, his guilt beginning to melt away. They were all there from team RWBY right through to the Professors themselves. Every one of them had a smile on their face.

"You've come a long way since the initiation exercise Mr. Arc. You too Miss. Nikos. You should be proud. However you have one last order of business before we can retire to Beacon for our celebrations. You must attend the Medal ceremony."

* * *

><p>Jaune left the parties early that evening and made his way back to the dorms the now familiar weight of the medal hanging from his neck. It was truly a beautiful piece. The medal itself was pure gold, imprinted with the words 'Champion of Vytal' and the date around its edges. In the centre was imprinted the image of both Jaune and Pyrrha's personal symbols, the double arches of Jaune run through with Pyrrha's spear. Each medal is custom made the day of the final just before the presentation ceremony, as such each set of medals is unique and minted for the individual winners. These medals are widely regarded as the highest athletic honours in Remnant.<p>

They had returned to Beacon straight after the medal ceremony, Jaune and Pyrrha both playfully fought over who would get first dibs on the shower whilst Ren fought to get Nora to even agree to a bath. As was the usual he had to promise her a plate of pancakes before she would play ball.

The hot water had two main affects on the Knight. Primarily it demonstrated exactly where all of his various cuts, scrapes and bruises were. And secondly it served to make him profoundly sleepy.

He reached his team's dorm room and quietly slipped inside, he quickly brushed his teeth and staggered to his bed collapsing into the welcoming embrace of his soft mattress. The day's events had finally caught up to him. Everything hurt, from his arms and chest down to his toes. He gave a sigh of relief and set his medal on his bedside table before closing his eyes and settling into a dreamless sleep.

It was some hours later than he was woken up by someone climbing into his bed, followed by the familiar smell of Pyrrha's perfume. He made way for her as she snuggled up to him, wrapping her long slender arms around him. He nuzzled his face into her hair and lightly kissed the top of her head.

"I'm sorry Pyrrha..." He whispered.

"What for Jaune? You didn't do anything wrong."

"I ruined our victory. It should have been the happiest and proudest moment of our lives."  
>"Jaune, you were under a lot of stress. It's OK. As a matter of fact standing on that podium with you <em>was<em> the happiest and proudest moment of my life because we did it together."

The blonde was silent, unsure of what to say. She had struck at the very core of his argument and dismantled it in a way that only she could. His heart overflowed at her words, and not for the first time he questioned how it was that he got to be so very lucky. With her held tightly in his arms lest she should fade away he drifted off once more to the gentle sound of her breathing.

* * *

><p>When Jaune awoke the next day the sun was already high in the sky. Sunbeams burst through the open curtains of team Juniper's dorm room bathing all it touched in the weak warmth of winter. Jaune looked about the room with bleary eyes to regain his bearings. It was empty, Ren and Nora had gone, their beds neatly made up. In his arms was Pyrrha, still soundly asleep.<p>

He lightly kissed her on the head before he extricated himself from underneath her, taking great care not to disturb her rest. His muscles ached dully as he made his way over to the en-suite. He turned the knobs and gingerly stepped into the steaming jet of water.

He showered quickly, seeking to rest and alleviate the aches and pains his body was riddled with. As he made his way from the bathroom, towelling off his messy blonde hair he noticed a sheet of paper on the desk, he walked over to it and saw it was a note from his teammates.

_'Jauney, Renny and I have gone with Team RWBY to watch them fight in the tournament. I wanted to wake you and Pyrrha up but Renny promised to buy me a big popcorn if I left you to sleep! He said you'd be super tired after yesterday (I still can't believe you two won!) Anyway, we'll save you some seats, see you later._

_ Nora.'_

Jaune chuckled and made a mental note to thank Ren for the favour, as well as to pay him back for the popcorn. He dressed himself and walked over to his bed. With all the care of a doting mother he gently shook his partner until she began to stir. She smacked her lips as she sat up yawning. Her pony-tail was all over the place and closer resembled a lion's mane, the Knight couldn't help but laugh earning himself a pout from the red-head. She threw aside the covers and drew herself out of bed doing her best to bite back another yawn and straighten out her nightgown. She collected some clothes and stumbled still half asleep into the bathroom.

She emerged not ten minutes later surrounded by a cloud of steam and dressed in her casual clothes. She was wearing a golden wool jumper trimmed with red, in the centre was her personal seal. Her familiar head dress rested on her head. She completed the look with a set of jeans that hugged her legs perfectly. She smiled to him.

"How do I look?" she half-sang.

"Heavenly." It was the only word that he felt did her justice.

He looked her over appreciatively once more before retrieving his scroll to let Ren know they would be on their way to the arena soon. He found a message waiting for him.

14:30- The stoic Lotus; _'Ruby and Weiss passed into the quarter-finals, Yang got knocked out in third preliminary by Coco, Blake lost to a strange orange-haired girl. Penny they said her name was. Anyway Weiss says the quarter-finals are scheduled to start at 4:30. See you then.'_

Jaune checked the time, it was 2:00pm they would have to get a move on. He showed his partner the message, she nodded and collected her weapons. Jaune strapped Crocea Mors to his hip and walked out of the room with his partner down towards the sky docks. The two chatted excitedly in anticipation of the upcoming fights.

* * *

><p>They arrived in the arena just before the fight was due to start. The trip had been relatively uneventful save for Jaune once again breaking his own travel sickness record. The two fought their way through the crowds following Ren's instructions and soon found their seats, their friends greeted them with waves, not wanting to take their eyes away from the arena floor and the fight that was due to start any moment. Yang silently smouldered, the occasional tongue of flame sputtering to life amongst her hair as she silently smouldered over her recent loss, she had a small strip running across her nose and her arm was in a cast. Blake seemed a little less annoyed, her eyes still held signs of disappointment but it was more subdued. She too bore the signs of her recent battle, bandages covered both her arms and her clothes were marred by a series of small tears.<p>

"Sorry we're late everyone, the fight hasn't started yet has it?" The champion asked from behind the huge tub of popcorn Jaune had bought them to share.

"Nothing yet, they've just announced the match but it's about to start."

No-one said another word, they poured all of their collective attention into the large screens displaying the live-feed. A cheer spread through the crowd like wild fire as the first of the amber lights lit up.

"Here we go folks, the first of the Vytal tournament's singles division quarter finals! The adorable Ruby Rose versus the enigmatic Coco! This certainly is a match for the record books!"

* * *

><p>The klaxon sounded and Ruby disappeared in a cloud of rose petals only to reappear behind Coco, scythe barrel levelled with her head. Without hesitation Ruby pulled the trigger, the shot rang out and a bright flash of brown light flew from the Reaper's opponent as she was blaster forwards and off her feet.<p>

She climbed back to her feet only to be launched once again, Ruby wasn't giving her the chance to move, hoping to limit her combat effectiveness. The third-year huntress was batted about like a rag-doll by the might of Crescent Rose.

Ruby made it seem an art form as she hooked the older girl with her monstrous scythe's blade and hacked, slashed and launched her opponent across the length and breadth of the arena floor. Her attacks were often interrupted by a series of thunderous bangs, as the high-impact rounds tore from her sniper rifle, striking the Upper-classman at speeds above the speed of sound. Every hit resounding around the arena and causing the whole crowd to collectively wince.

After a series of hits Ruby stopped, panting but poised and ready for a counter-attack as Coco once again climbed to her feet. Ruby's legs burned from the continued use of her semblance. Coco pulled off her signature sunglasses, they were shattered leaving little more than a twisted frame. She spat out a globule of blood and looked menacingly at the young red-head.

"You just broke my favourite sunglasses... _Biiiig _mistake. Prepare to die."

With an evil grin, she clicked a button upon the handle of her handbag, a series of metallic clicks and whirring sounds came from within as it mecha-shifted into a huge Gatling gun. Jaune watched in horror as its ten barrels began to spool up.

Ruby looked on in shock, all to aware that she was now very much in trouble.

_'Think like Weiss, think like Weiss, what would she do?' _the Rose's panicked mind shouted repeatedly.

"Ruuun!" Was all she said as the first of the colossal dust-rounds whizzed towards her at a rate of two thousand per minute. She ran as fast as her semblance could carry her, but the stream of bullets seemed to be following right behind her no matter where she went. Ruby knew, one false move and she would be sawn in half by the seemingly endless torrent of red-hot dust-infused metal. Coco laughed almost maniacally as she toyed with her little foe, always aiming a little behind the red blur. The multiple barrels of her weapon beginning to glow hot as she kept Ruby on the run.

The various members of the crowd flinched and ducked each time Coco's weapon pointed towards them, hundreds of bullets flying in their direction only to be stopped by the crowd protection barriers at the last possible moment.

Deciding enough was enough the Upper-classman switched tact and aimed a little before her target, not an easy task as the Reaper dodged this way and that. After a series of adjustments a series dull thuds and an anguished cry rang out as one of her rounds struck true. Coco stemmed the tide of bullets sending the Rose careening towards the solid floor clutching at her chest. Yang leapt to her feet and made to dive for her sister only to be grabbed, hauled back and restrained by the combined efforts of Ren, Jaune _and_ Nora.

The Klaxon sounded as the match ended. Coco switched her weapon back to bag form before making her way over to Ruby and offering her a hand up. Ruby took it and was hauled to her feet.

"You were toying with me weren't you?" Ruby pouted, her low aura reserves working to alleviate the pain within her chest. She had been saved the lethal bite of the bullets but she would have some impressive bruises the next day.

"Yes Ruby. Your semblance tires you quickly, by using bullets to keep you on the run I could tire you out and burn down your aura reserves. It was only a matter of time." She smirked.

"There it is ladies and gentlemen! Our first finalist of this year's singles division is Coco!"

Coco raised her arm and smiled to the crowds, eliciting a thunderous applause for herself and her valiant foe. Before she made her way into the tunnel and toward the lounges, followed closely by Ruby who caressed her 'baby' and checking it over for any scratches or dents.

* * *

><p>Maintenance staff came on and removed the thousands upon thousands of spent cases in preparation for the next match. It was a further half an hour before Weiss and Penny entered the ring. In that time Ruby worked her way up to join them sitting on a spare seat between Yang and Blake. Yang drew her sister into a bone-crushing hug in an effort to console her little sister.<p>

Around them the crowds entertained themselves by chanting various slogans to each other in a question-answer format. Throwing chanted banter between members of each of the four kingdoms, gradually stepping up a notch each time.

Before their chanting could escalate too far, the announcer's voice boomed out from the loud speakers once again.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Another stellar match-up for you! The elegant Miss Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company! Versus the mysterious new-comer Penny!"

The crowd cheered wildly as the two competitors entered the ring. Weiss walked with an heir of confidence and grace. Penny however seemed to clunk along in almost a robotic fashion, with a strange rigidity to her movements.

The two fighters adopted their ready position, Weiss pointed Myrtenaster towards the strange orange-haired girl whom remained unarmed. Weiss summoned a glyph as the Klaxon sounded and rocketed forwards on an air-step, the point of her rapier aimed straight for Penny's chest.

In an oddly fluid movement Penny leant back into a series of backflips dodging out of the Heiress' path. The audience gasped in surprise as a panel opened up in the orange haired girl's back and out floated a series of metal circles. With a jolt they folded out for form twelve swords which moved steadily through the air to form a defensive circle in front of her. The flap in her back closed up seamlessly leaving Jaune to wonder if it had ever been there at all.

Weiss scowled icily towards the girl, unsure of where the twelve blades had come from. Rotating the chambers in the guard of her rapier she selected red dust. Once again she air-stepped towards Penny, summoning a series of glyphs at all angles around her. She launched her attack rebounding off of her target and into the various glyphs attacking in torrents of fire.

Penny remained impassive, with mere hand gestures she conducted her twelve swords as though they were an orchestra, directing them in small groups to deflect the Ice Queen's strikes and dissipate the flames. Suddenly she lashed out conducting a symphony of dancing points and blades, the floating weapons attacking mercilessly at every opportunity, forcing the Schnee back. A pommel struck her and sent her flying only for a sword point to be driven through her sleeve and into the ground below.

With a glare she cut herself free and regained her feet. Staring daggers at Penny whom had a perpetual smile emblazoned upon her face, as though all that Weiss was doing was a mere game to her. She launched another flight of blades, though Weiss was ready. She contorted herself to avoid their bite. Beads of sweat clung to her forehead, her ponytail beginning to lose its definition in the fierce heat of their battle. With a flick of her wrist she loosed a blast of ice from Myrtenaster freezing one of Penny's sword orchestra, she followed it up with a savage kick shattering the blade into frozen fragments.

She lunged and to her absolute horror the girl reached out and grabbed hold of the rapier with her bare hands. Penny wrenched it from her grasp and threw it off to the side. The red-head threw a punch knocking the 'snow angel' to the ground and sending two blades to pin her arms with a precision unlike anything Jaune had ever seen. With a further motion the remaining nine swords span faster and faster in a circle, their points all aiming straight at Weiss.

Jaune twitched uncomfortably as he felt an aura surge. In the midst of the ring of swords a green light bloomed and began to grow, a ball of pure energy drawn directly from Penny's aura. It grew and grew until it was roughly the size of her torso.

Weiss' sleeves began to rip as she struggled against the honed edges that held her in place. Fear dawned in the young heiress' eyes, there was little escaping from the oncoming attack. Ruby called out in desperation as she looked on at her helpless partner.

Penny drew her arms back and made a pushing motion, from the orb came a solid beam of green energy. It blasted down consuming the Ice Queen and obscured her from view. Dust billowed around as the attack kicked up clouds.

The spectators watched on in total suspense hardly daring to breath, anxiously waiting to see if the brave Schnee would be alright. The dust cleared to reveal Weiss in the centre of a large crater, a brilliant white glyph flickering above her as she struggled to hold it there. The hem of her combat skirt smouldering away and glowing orange. The heiress' face showed the signs of fatigue, she was in a bad way, panting heavily with sweat running down her face granting her skin a certain sheen.

Penny looked little worse for wear and still smiled brilliantly towards anyone who looked at her. Jaune glanced towards the boards, Weiss' aura reserves were all but gone, her last defensive glyph having taken a vast amount to maintain in order to hold back Penny's energy attack. The orange-haired girl herself had over half left, her own attack draining a good portion combined with Weiss' own attacks.

Things weren't looking good for the snow angel. Ruby whimpered quietly behind Jaune, her concern for her partner flowing freely. Jaune looked at Pyrrha who gently shook her head. He knew what she meant. The chances of Weiss emerging victorious from the match were fading with each passing moment.

Weiss looked around for anything that might help lead her towards victory but found nothing, she tore her tattered sleeves free of the two weapons which had held her pinned as Penny began charging her attack once more.

Realization dawned on the Schnee's face as she watched the green orb begin to grow again, she knew there was no way she could block another attack of that magnitude. With a frown she waved her arm to the officials.

"I concede!" She called out weakly.

The klaxon sounded and Penny's swords stilled themselves, the green energy dissipating into the air. Her weapons levitated their way behind the girl again before folding again and floating back into her back again.

_'How __**does**__ she do that?' _Jaune wondered to himself as he stared in awe.

* * *

><p>The students watched in amazement and childlike Joy at the closing ceremony for the tournament. The medals were presented for the singles division, Penny proudly receiving her gold with a cry of 'sen-sational!'.<p>

The ceremony was accompanied by dancers and live music from the best singers and songwriters that Vale had to offer, including a unique performance from Weiss herself. The beauty of her voice bringing tears to more than a few eyes.

As the ceremony came to a close the audience gasped in pleasant surprise as small flakes of snow drifted in through the arena's open roof, the first snow of the Valean winter. With a wide smile Jaune stuck out his tongue and caught one, instantly sending a refreshingly cool burst through his mouth.

That evening Beacon was near silent following Coco's defeat at the hands of the stranger Penny. The students fiercely debated just how she had managed to beat the third-year and how she had controlled her weapons. The most common theory was that she was in fact telepathic and with the use of her semblance, controlled her swords.

Coco herself had seemed thoroughly disappointed despite the hefty chunk of silver hanging from her neck. On her return from the tournament she had eaten briefly and taken a foray into the Emerald Forest. The sounds of gunshots and the screams of Grimm could be heard echoing about the campus late into the night. Many a student shuddered at the thought and even gave a thought of sympathy for whatever creatures had the misfortune of encountering the upset fashionista. She returned late that night covered from head to toe in the black blood of Grimm, fatigue etched across her face. She returned in silence to her dorm room and made her way inside she showered before collapsing on her bed and instantly drifting to sleep. One thing was agreed by all; It is a very poor idea to upset Coco.

* * *

><p><strong>I hope you enjoyed that. Sorry if it wasn't quite up to scratch or was too long. I tried to take some of the reviews into account and tie back in the concept of aura weaponry. Next time I'll be moving onto a seasonal few chapters for My fluffy Dustmas arc. As always follow, favourite and review. Help me improve what I'm producing for you, because without readers this fic would cease to be.<strong>

**I'll try and get the next chapter done by Christmas but if I don't then a merry Christmas to you all! Or a happy Holidays if you don't celebrate Christmas and I'll see you all in the next chapter.**


	18. Coming Home For Dustmas

**Hello and a merry Christmas to you all! or a happy Holidays if you're not that way inclined. Here it is, your fluffy Christmas arc! I had good fun writing this and I hope you enjoy it. **

* * *

><p>Jaune was excited, there were no two ways about it. With the Vytal tournament over and done with (He and Pyrrha having been crowned Champion) he had little more to do than look forward to the Dustmas-holidays.<p>

He was sat in his final lesson on the final day of term before Beacon broke for the holidays. Five whole weeks without lectures or combat training, at long last he could just kick back and relax. All he had to do was survive the dust-plane flight home, some three hours away in the North of Vale.

The final bell rang and both he and his team sprinted out the door, barely catching the end of Port's long-winded goodbye. He ran through the hallways at break-neck pace narrowly dodging various students laden with books.

Jaune, Ren and Nora all burst through the door at once and scrambled over to their respective bed spaces packing what little remained of their belongings in a flurry of movement. All except Pyrrha. She moved over to her bed and sat down with a sigh, slowly drawing out a small day-sack and packing a few spare pieces of clothing.

Seeing his partner so dejected struck Jaune hard bringing him crashing down to earth and forcefully tearing him from his excitement. He walked over and sat down besides her resting a gentle but firm hand upon her shoulder. She looked up at him, her emerald eyes lacking their usual joviality and replaced instead with ones containing deep sadness.

"I-Is everything OK Pyrrha? Are you not excited for Dustmas?"

"My family don't celebrate it..." She mumbled.

"W-what do you mean?"

"Ever since I was little my parents have pushed for me to become the very best that I could be, they had me train hard every day so that I might be the star fighter and make them proud. There was no time for Birthdays or Dustmas or anything else, only another day's training. All of my friends at Sanctum would come in describing their Dustmases and I was left to simply lament my own lack." Her voice trembled with pent up emotion, the room silent with both Ren and Nora listening intently.

"Pyrrha that's awful..." Nora said, for once sounding deadly serious.

Jaune thought for a long moment on his partner's plight, before he snapped his fingers.

"Aha! I've got it!" He exclaimed quite suddenly.

"Got what Jaune?" His three teammates asked in unison.

"The solution! Pyrrha, how would you like to spend the holidays with me?" His enthusiasm was plain to see, a sparkle in his eye.

"Jaune, I'm flattered but I couldn't impose..."  
>"Nonsense! You won't be imposing! Just think how excited Marron will be to see you again!" He was grinning ear to ear.<p>

"W-will you have enough room, I mean your sisters and all..." hope bloomed in her voice  
>"Plenty, You can stay in my room!"<p>

"J-Jaune I-"

"It's settled! I'll let my parents know you're coming!" He jumped to his feet and retrieved his call before darting out of the room to phone his family leaving a very confused Nora, a smirking Ren and a silent Pyrrha. A squeal of joy rang out within the Champion's mind as pure unadulterated happiness and gratitude swelled up within her heart, so much so that the instant Jaune stepped back into the room she dove at him pulling him into a bone crushing hug and fervently thanking him over and over with tears streaming down her cheeks and soaking his school blazer.

"Hey Pyrrha we're all good to- Hey! What's the matter?"

Jaune was caught utterly by surprise but soon wrapped her tightly in his arms, he rubbed her back in an attempt to comfort her. She pulled her face out of his shoulder and looked him deep in the eyes.

"Jaune, you have no idea how much this means to me..." She sniffed, smiling bravely despite the tears still rolling down her cheeks.

"Pyrrha, it's my absolute pleasure." He smiled back, cupping her cheek and using his thumb to wipe away her tears.

"Now, you'd best pack. Our flight leaves soon."

She nodded and shot off towards her wardrobe, hurriedly sorting through her clothes asking him frantic questions like; 'How far away is it?','Is it very cold?', 'What kind of clothes should I take?'. The blonde laughed as he tried to answer as many of her questions as he could.

"It's about two to three hours via dust-plane, It's not all that cold and Pyrrha take whichever clothes you like. My family will provide any clothes that you don't have with you."

* * *

><p>The four teenagers of Team Juniper stood on the cold stone of the sky dock, the Valean winter sun already beginning to set despite it only being early afternoon. The team prepared to go their separate ways, Nora and Ren heading off to their own home-town for the holidays.<p>

Ren shook their hands with a slight nod before Nora grabbed them into a massive cluster hug.

"I'm gonna miss you both so much!" She whined as she released them, they both collapsed gasping for air.

"We'll...miss you...too Nora." Jaune managed to croak out.

"Take care now and happy holidays." Ren smiled

Ren lightly clasped the Valkyrie by her shoulder and began to lead her towards one of the large passenger craft, they waved a final goodbye before being lost from sight in the throngs of students all fighting their way onboard the last flights out of town.

Jaune and Pyrrha both began to make their way towards their craft before being stopped by a voice, or rather two.

"Hey Vomit-Boy!"

He span around to find Yang and Ruby jogging towards them, closely followed by both Weiss and Blake.

"You off home for the holidays?" Ruby asked.

"Yeah, are you guys?" Jaune replied.

"You bet! Our dad invited Weiss and Blake to stay on Patch with us! We're gonna partaay!" Ruby practically squealed with pent up excitement.

"Jaune's parents were kind enough to invite me to stay with them too." Pyrrha grinned ear to ear and hugged the Knight all the tighter.

"Well, we'd best be going or we'll miss our flight. You guys take care now!" Jaune shouted back, leading Pyrrha off towards their dust-plane waving enthusiastically as his inner child came bursting to the surface.

Pyrrha chatted excitedly with her partner for the entire three hour duration of the flight. She questioned him all about his six other sisters, the nature of his home, his favourite places to eat, the town traditions and so on. Jaune was only too happy, their conversation helped while away what would have otherwise been an incredibly dull flight, as well as serving to distract him from his churning stomach.

Their ship passed over snowy expanses as it flew effortlessly through Vale's winter sky. Small flakes of snow drifted lightly past their window, a calm and beautiful sight. One which the Champion couldn't help but pause to admire. Snow was incredibly rare in Mistral and never fell in such large amounts as she was currently seeing. The Knight watched with amusement as her radiant viridian eyes lit up at the sight of the snow falling just beyond their grasp. A plan formed in his head, one which birthed the mischievous grin he wore.

It was not long after that their flight landed.

"Welcome to Nord-de-Neige, it is currently -23 degrees centigrade outside. Please take care when disembarking so as not to slip on any ice. Enjoy your stay."

"I though you said it wasn't too cold?" Pyrrha pouted, grabbing her luggage.

Jaune gathered his bags from the overhead locker and pulled his partner back. Reaching into his bag he pulled out a long flowing red cloak. It was trimmed with golden thread and fur lined its hood. It was a garment fit for a Champion, his Champion. He proffered it up to her with a smile.

Pyrrha gently took the cloak and held it out in front of herself, admiring it. She thought it a truly beautiful gift. She thanked him and wrapped it around herself. It was incredibly warm, the thick red fabric locking in any and all heat she radiated.

"T-thank you Jaune. I love it!" She beamed at him. Jaune only shrugged in response.

"As you now know, it gets a little cold this far north, what with all the snow and all. I didn't want you getting cold and I noticed you don't seem to have any really warm clothes."

She leant in and kissed him, the fur from the cloak's hood tickling his face. He suppressed the urge to sneeze before retrieving a thick parka from his bag and donning it. His whole body poofed out under the thick coat, rendering him unable to put his arms down at his sides. Next he pulled out his Vytal medal and hung it around his neck, he wanted to be wearing it when he met his parents again.

Seeing him wear the medal once again Pyrrha pulled out the box from her bag which contained her own, she too wore hers. The couple made their way down the main aisle and bid farewell to the stewardesses as they climbed out onto the boarding steps and into the cold.

The frigid air hit them and took their breath away after so long in the heated cabin of the aircraft. Their breaths erupted as clouds as they rapidly condensed. Despite just how cold it was, it failed to chill them to the core. It was a fresh, crisp and dry cold as opposed to the usual damp bone-chilling cold of main Vale.

Jaune and Pyrrha reached the bottom of the ramp and before either of them could react they were surrounded by a heaving tide of people with cameras and notepads, surrounded by a cacophony of different voices all fighting for their attentions. Jaune couldn't understand what was going on, but Pyrrha knew. Dread swelled within her as she recognised the all too familiar pack that was the paparazzi.

"Mr Arc, What's it like being a Champion?", "Give us a smile Mr Arc!", "Is it true that you're romantically involved with Miss Nikos?"

The different voices all assaulted him at once accompanied by sporadic camera flashes made his head spin. He just wanted it to end to curl up and wait for them all to leave him alone. He couldn't escape, they had effectively surrounded them both.

"Mr Arc would like to decline to make a comment! Please make way!" Pyrrha's voice boomed out full of force and anger. The journalists stopped dead and stepped out of the way as Pyrrha led Jaune away and into one of the the sky-dock's terminals.

"Are you alright Jaune?" Concern emanated from the red-head.  
>"W-what just happened Pyrrha?"<p>

"Jaune, those parasites were journalists. A side affect of winning one of the Vytal festival tournaments, also a side affect of dating me. My own fame makes anyone close to me a target for gossip magazines."  
>Jaune shivered at the thought, he knew that Pyrrha had had some issues with media attention before both from her own accounts and the occasional journalist that had gotten brave enough to approach them in public. Yet since Nora's 'intervention' the last time they had all but backed off. Word was that the unfortunate victim had had to have his legs pieced back together one bone fragment at a time. Oh how he missed the Valkyrie at that moment.<p>

"I don't get it, why are we only seeing them now?"

"You know the Beacon policy. No journalists are allowed on campus for fear of them distracting the students. Ozpin must have put a media blackout on all of the students for the duration of the festival in an effort to protect us, it seems we have left his influence."

"So what do we do?" the blonde asked, his stomach knotting.

"How far is it to your parents house?" She asked.

"It's not too far, but I was gonna show you around on the way." He looked disappointed.

"We will have plenty of time for that, but for now I think it's best if we make our way straight there."

Jaune nodded and clasped her hand.

"OK then, follow me."

With that he led her out into the icy cold once again.

* * *

><p>Jaune led her up to a fairly large log house. The sloped roof was blanketed in a thick layer of snow. The windows glowed with warmth but were coated by a solid frost obscuring all vision to the inside.<p>

The trip through town had been a slow and nervous one. They had left the terminal and pulled their hoods right down hoping to cover as much of their faces as was possible. Their tactic worked for the most part save for two occasions in which a particularly eagle-eyed journalist had caught a glimpse of their faces or their weapons and run towards them. In those situations the two teenagers had simply had to run as fast as they could without slipping.

On both occasions the couple had managed to escape by darting into an alleyway or simply out stripping them through speed and endurance alone (a perk of training for combat daily). After that Jaune had led them down back alleys to avoid the main streets. Pyrrha marvelled at just how well he seemed to know the town despite having been absent for so long.

"When I was a kid I used to get bullied by the bigger kids so I learned all my available escape routes when they chased after me. After a while they left me alone and these routes just became particularly handy for getting about." He shrugged when she inquired about his knowledge.

Jaune stepped up to the front porch of his family home and dropped his bags. Taking a deep breath, he reached out and hit the doorbell. From inside a host of voices could be heard. They were all silenced however by the deep booming voice of a man, Jaune's father Louis to be exact.

"No thank-you! We don't want anymore Journalists, photographers or congratulations!" His father sounded more fed up than he did angry. Jaune couldn't resist, he put on his best old man's voice and replied.

"And what about very old friends?"

The knight struggled to hold in his laughter as the sounds of a commotion came from behind the door as his family fought to open the door. He turned and shrugged to the giggling Pyrrha, a wide smile upon his face.

"Jaune!"

The door was thrown open and no sooner than it had Jaune was tackled to the ground by a whole host of bodies. The Knight had no hope of escaping the press, instead he did his best to lessen his impact with the ground. He shivered as a heap of snow made its way into the collar of his parka, cooling his back in an instant.

Pyrrha looked on from under her fur lined hood giggling uncontrollably. There was a pile of six blonde women and one particularly adorable brunette all on top of where her boyfriend had previously been stood. The infamous Arc sisters. A loud booming laughter erupted over the chaotic giggles of the seven sisters. The Champion turned to see both Louis and his wife Mabel, each in the others arms their faces the epitome of merriment itself. On their heads sat red hats trimmed with white fur.

The seven girls eventually climbed off of Jaune and drew the flattened Knight to his feet with cries of 'Jauney!' 'How are you?' and 'It's so good to see you!'. After the greetings had exchanged they turned their attentions to the cloaked red-head.

"Jaune, who's this? Is it your _girlfriend_?" asked one of the tallest, she waggled her eyebrows suggestively in a manner which reminded Pyrrha all too much of a certain blonde Brawler.

"Yes." He said bluntly with a smirk. "This is my partner, Pyrrha Nikos."

A chorus of 'No way's and 'get outta town's rang out from the six girls.

"Did Marron not tell you?" Jaune laughed, giving a sly wink to his youngest sister whom tried to return the gesture but failed most adorably.

"No Jaune, she didn't. To be honest I'm not sure I even believe you." One retorted, annoyance clear in her voice. She was backed up by a series of nods from the others.

It was at this moment that Pyrrha pulled down her hood revealing her famous red hair and stepped forward.

"Hello, I'm Pyrrha. It's a pleasure to meet you all." She smiled.

The six blondes stared agape at the familiar red-head, some pointing with shaking hands much the same way that Jaune had when he first found out who she really was. They were utterly silent, stunned into uninterrupted quiet, which to the Arc parents was a blessing in and of itself.

Mabel stepped out into the cold and wrapped an arm around Pyrrha's shoulders, ushering her in out of the cold and into the warm well lit halls of the Arc residence. The interior was like something out of a fairy tale. All of the walls were decorated with a mixture of paintings, photographs and tapestries depicting the Arc family's past members right the way through to the present.

She was stood in a long hallway, off to her left was a large staircase, at the foot of which resided an old coat stand and a mountain of shoes. Pyrrha dutifully removed her own and placed them neatly next to the pile as well as hanging her new cloak up on one of the free pegs, much to Mabel's amusement. Back outside could be heard squeals of excitement and laughter, Pyrrha was curious what was going on but Mabel blocked her view.

Ahead of her stretched a long hallway with a great many doorways opening up on either side. Mabel led her off into the first room on the right which turned out to be a large living room. A roaring fire snapped, crackled and popped in a large hearth, its heat a welcome boon.

In the corner stood the largest fir tree that she had ever seen. It was decorated with lights and tinsel the full extent of its height, each and every inch seemingly receiving the same care and attention to detail. On its very top resided a china angel, wonderfully well made. It looked as though it might come to life at any moment.

The furniture was lavish. There were two large couches with carved ends and deep cushions. In the centre of the room was an elaborately carved coffee table, it was completely bare save for a small bowl containing a variety of different nuts and a nutcracker. On the wall was a huge holographic screen although currently turned off. Lastly was an old and rickety looking rocking chair

The Champion was led over to one of the couches, she sank into the rug the fibres feeling pleasant around her toes. She set herself down on one of the couches and Mabel sat next to her.

"Would you like a drink dear? Some coffee or hot cocoa maybe? You must have been freezing half to death out there. How could my son drag you all the way here through the snow?!"

"That would be lovely." She smiled. "Don't blame Jaune, he was just excited to show me around his home town. It's just a shame that the journalists got in the way of that. It was like feeding time at the zoo."

"Yes... We've been having a spot of bother with them lately." The older huntress frowned. "We all watched your matches. You were both so great together! There wasn't a dry eye in the house when you won, little Marron ran around the house screaming the place down in excitement, bless her!"

Mabel reached out and lightly grasped the metal disk around Pyrrha's neck scrutinising it closely. After some time of silence in which Pyrrha began to feel increasingly awkward Mabel rose and made her way to the door, explaining she was going to go and fix the drinks. The eight Arc siblings burst through the front door followed by their father.

Each and every one of them was covered from head to toe in snow and were laughing gaily. They brushed themselves off resulting in a small snow drift in the hallway which quickly melted into a minor lake. The Arc children all pointed unanimously to their father whom threw up his arms in mock indignation

"He started it..." they all cried out before they all broke down into waves of laughter once again.

Mabel was stood in the hall holding two steaming mugs and stopped dead at the sight. Every one of them froze, and it was then that the aged huntress exploded. Jaune, Louis, Marron and the other six sisters recoiled in fear as Mabel seemed to grow in stature. The moment she finished all of the Arcs (including Louis) ran up the stairs.

Pyrrha stared at Mabel with new-found awe, she was a dragon and commanded the respect of each and every member of her family. It had been clear from their initial meeting at Beacon all that time ago that Mabel was a force to be reckoned with, but to see it for herself was something else entirely.

And just like switching off a light Mrs Arc resumed her calm and collected state. She moved over to the Spartan and settled down besides her. With a steady hand she offered one of the mugs to the young Champion. Pyrrha gratefully accepted and sipped at her cocoa, being careful not to scald her tongue as she had so often seen Nora do.

Before long the two women had settled into comfortable and companionable conversation regarding their biggest piece of common ground, a certain hapless Knight. Mabel shared a great deal of anecdotes from the Knight's childhood which left her lungs burning as she gasped for air, struggling to hold back wave after wave of giggles.

Ten minutes later they came back down fully changed with Jaune still towelling off his hair. The Arc siblings and Louis made their way into the lounge and split down between the two couches. Jaune took his seat next to Pyrrha, his older sisters cramming onto the remaining couch spaces and Marron occupying the floor at Jaune's feet, he settled into running his hands through the little brunette's hair slowly and methodically.

Jaune and his seven sisters all wore hand knitted red Dustmas jumpers, each and every one had the first letter of their names emblazoned in white on the front. It was a truly adorable sight.

"Pyrrha, allow me to introduce my siblings." He grinned "Marron you already know of course. Other than her we have; Amber (she's the oldest), Madelein, Coral, Sable, Hazel and Violet." He pointed to each of the girls accordingly.

Amber was a medium height with greenish-blue eyes. Her luscious blonde hair cascaded down to just below her shoulder blades. Her nose was slightly crooked, listing over towards the right side of her face. She was pretty by the standards of most and yet she was lacking something that the Champion just couldn't identify.

Madelein was by far the tallest of the sisters. Her hair was bleached blonde and of a pixie cut style, no doubt a demonstration of her rebellious streak. Despite this she too was fair of face, a few freckles followed her jawline. She seemed to take after her father in her bearing than her mother.

Coral seemed to be the quietest of the sisters. She sat with a book in hand, her sapphire blue eyes occasionally flitting up from the pages to observe those around her. She exuded an air of quiet confidence. Her hair was tied up into a short and tidy pony-tail. A set of reading-glasses rested upon the bridge of her nose, a sign of her dedication to literature.

Next, Pyrrha turned her attention to Sable. Sable was of a much bigger build than her siblings definitely taking after her father's stature. Her Hair was swept over one side completely covering her left eye. Upon closer inspection Pyrrha found to her shock that this was to cover a brown leather eye-patch. Sable's face had a long white scar running from her right temple down her cheek to her chin and yet despite these old wounds she still held a certain dignified and proud beauty.

Hazel sat perched on the edge of the couch scrutinizing the red-head just as the redhead scrutinized her. She had short dirty blonde hair that hung to just above her slim shoulders. Hazel cut a lithe figure, sleek and streamlined. She had piercing, grey, inquisitive eyes, which seemed to take in every detail about the Champion methodically. It made Pyrrha shiver.

Finally came Violet. In all but name and age Violet took after her mother. Her outward appearance was very much the same as Mabel's. She had a proud look about her, with a strong jawline. Her eyes the same green that Marron shared. She had an aura of childlike innocence and joviality reminiscent of both Nora and Ruby.

Pyrrha nodded politely to each of the sisters in turn as the introductions were made, hoping to make a favourable first impression.

"We watched your matches with out little Jauney, you were amazing!" Violet cried out punching the air in her enthusiasm.

"Yeah, Jauney's really come along. He was awful when he left for Beacon." Sable spoke, her voice quite deep and husky.

"W-well, we've been training hard for a good while now." Pyrrha explained smiling to her partner. "His progress is all his own. There are few who work as hard as Jaune does. He works at being the very best leader he can be and we all respect him for it."

Jaune blushed at hearing his girlfriend sing his praises, it was not a usual thing to happen especially at home. Ordinarily he would be drowned out by his sister Sable, the renowned warrior and huntress.

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><p>The family stayed up until late, Marron long since having fallen asleep against Jaune's legs. Pyrrha herself had curled up cuddling her Knight and making him blush much to his sisters amusement. The sisters questioned her about her exploits as a part of Team Juniper and her prior history as the Mistralian legend.<p>

The fire began to burn low, Pyrrha loosed an unintentional yawn. Almost as though it were a signal that she had been waiting for Mabel stood up and clapped her hands.

"Alright girls, it's time for bed" She ushered the six older sisters up and towards the door with hushed calls of; 'goodnight'.

"Jaune, can you show Pyrrha to your room while I take little Marron up?" She smiled lifting the tiny brunette into her arms.

Jaune nodded and made to stand only to find Pyrrha fast asleep up against him. With a low chuckle he scooped her up into his arms bridal style and carried her up towards the door when a voice stopped him.

"Jaune, I'm trusting you. No funny business please." His mother cautioned.

"OK Mom." he replied.

He carried the champion up the stairs and into his old room. Once there he gently set her down on his old bed with a light peck on her cheek. He left the room and brushed his teeth, changing into his pyjamas. Once he was ready for bed he climbed in next to his partner, she snuggled up to him almost immediately. The gentle gusts of her breathing lightly tickling his neck. He closed his eyes and felt his body relax and unwind.

_'It's good to be home.'_ He thought with a smile.

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><p><strong>There you are, part one all done and dusted. Just to clarify, I've decided that Ozpin arranged a blockade against the journalists in Beacon and Vale, preventing them from distracting his students. In the north this rule doesn't apply...don't ask why...just blame the Starks. Next champter shall be coming along fairly soon. Don't forget to follow, favourite and to always review if you have any comments, criticisms and suggestions for improvements.<strong>

**I hope you all have a fantastically happy holidays and I'll see you all in the next chapter.**


	19. An exchanging of gifts

**Hello once again to all of you lovely people! I hope you all had an awesome Christmas, I know I did. I am thoroughly overdosed on cheese and chocolate. I present to you the second Part of my Dustmas story Arc. Enjoy.**

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><p>The first week of the holidays went by remarkably quickly for the Champion. Between watching Jaune and his sisters fight for the bathroom and the last of the hot water in the mornings and Jaune taking her out into the snow covered town for the day time flew by.<p>

Despite his efforts, she never did get to see much of the town. Either they would be seen by journalists and have to make a hasty retreat back to the Arc family house, or they would end up in a coffee emporium Jaune had shown her, drinking hot cocoa.

Each subsequent day Pyrrha's excitement grew. On Dustmas Eve she thought she might explode with the sheer excitement of it. Her first proper Dustmas since time immemorial was only one night away, a mere 12 hours, thirty seven minutes and thirteen seconds... not that she was counting of course.

She had snuck out that very morning and completed her gift shopping, returning in the early afternoon very flustered and carrying what seemed to be the entire towns stock of carrier bags. It had taken an awful lot longer and was far more difficult than she expected to buy gifts for all of the Arcs. The eight Arc women looked at her with amused expressions and more than one cocked eyebrow. Jaune just stared wide-eyed in shock.

"You sure you've got enough there Pyrrha?" Sable giggled

Pyrrha blushed slightly and shrugged before struggling her way up the stairs and locking herself in Jaune's room.

The next three hours were nought but a cacophony of tearing paper and scotch tape unravelling. Behind the door Pyrrha was a flurry of wrapping. Every parcel had to be perfect, the wrapping precise.

When at long last she re-emerged the carrier bags had been replaced by hundreds of neatly wrapped objects. They were covered in a rich, thick red paper and trimmed with golden ribbon, all topped of with a single perfectly formed bow. She carefully laid each and every one out under the large fur tree with deliberate slowness, smirking at the inquisitive glances coming from the Arc family.

She stood at last and surveyed her work, pleased with the presentation of each gift she made her way back upstairs wiping a thin film of sweat from her forehead as she went. She entered the room and pulled an outfit from her bag as well as collecting her towel and wash kit before making her way into the bathroom for a hot shower.

The water felt luxurious against her skin after her morning out in the sub-zero temperatures of Nord-de-Neige, warming her body right through to the core. She loosed an involuntary moan, her hands flying to her mouth in surprise and her cheeks burning red.

After a good ten minutes she stepped out and dried herself off. She dressed in some loose fitting jeans and a red sweater. Rather than put it in its usual ponytail, Pyrrha elected to allow her hair to flow free. To complete her look she added a single white glass tulip behind her ear.

As she came downstairs she heard a collection of hushed voices all fighting for dominance over one another. Her curiosity overcoming her she crept down the final few steps and up to the living room door. Slowly but surely she peeked around the corner and had to struggle to stop herself laughing at the sight.

The entire Arc family were crowded around the tree on hands and knees, Pyrrha's presents spread across the entire room. They were frantically reading labels and lightly shaking the boxes in an effort to work out what was inside. No-one was innocent, even Mabel sat crouched in the corner with an expression of childlike glee on her face as she felt out the contours of a parcel.

"Come on! Hurry! She'll be down soon. Get them all back in place!" A voice whispered. To Pyrrha's amusement it was actually Jaune. The Knight stood with his hands on his hips issuing orders like some kind of Dustmas foreman. Directing each of his family on where to place their parcels so as to make them look undisturbed.

Content that all of the gifts were back in place the whole family shot back into their seats just as Pyrrha decided to burst from her hiding place. The Arc's all looked at her with nervous eyes, the only one who didn't was Jaune. He returned her gaze without any sign of guilt or nerves, solid as a rock.

_'Clearly it isn't someone's first time doing this...' _she mused to herself as she sat down next to him.

"Why are you all out of breath?" Pyrrha asked feigning innocence.

The Arcs' eyes darted around as they all looked at each other knowing the game was up. Sable sighed and was just about to break when Jaune jumped in.

"We were play fighting... I had the television remote and Madelein wanted it and well lets just say things escalated and the others got involved. It turned into all out war..." Jaune grinned.

_'So he wants to play this game... well I'll let him win for now. Later however he will pay.' _she thought mischievously.

"Oh, You should know better than to get between your sisters and their daily dose of dust-enders." She chuckled.

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><p>Pyrrha and the Arcs spent their Dustmas Eve playing 'cheat' with one another around the family's large mahogany dining table by the light of the fire. From what Pyrrha understood, the whole pack was dealt out evenly between those assembled, the object was then to lie and cheat your way through your whole hand and be the first to get rid of all of your cards without being caught out. Mabel darted in and out of the room to tend to the dinner, and it smelt fantastic. Pungent aromas of roasting meats wafted in with the warm air from the ovens filling the whole house with the tantalising scents of home cooking.<p>

The card game itself was unrealistically tense. If Pyrrha had learned anything in her stay with Jaune's family it was that they were fiercely competitive, with scuffles breaking out over the smallest of things. Well that and that one should never interrupt the Arc sisters in the middle of an episode of Dust-enders, an odd soap-opera focussing around a group of people who seemed incapable of proper speech. The actors dropped their 't's and 'h's as though they were going out of fashion.

"Cheat!" Jaune called drawing Pyrrha out of her thoughts. he slammed his hand down on the table and pointing a finger at his oldest sister Amber. The eldest of the siblings looked him square in the eyes.

"Prove it Lover-boy." She challenged with a smirk.

"You _can't _have four sixes Amber. I have two here for a start!" He flipped over the top four cards triumphantly revealing that his sister had indeed lied.

"Dammit Jaune! One more turn and I'd have won!" She growled pounding a fist down onto the tables surface.

"Amber please, that table is expensive! Don't be so rough." Mabel chastised.

"Mom it's just a table!" She replied curtly.

"It is _**mahogany**_!" Her mother's voice thundered out, silencing the entire room. "Now pack the cards away and set the table. Dinner is ready."

Louis and the girls scattered; Coral and Marron fetching and unfolding the table cloth, Jaune came back in holding fistfuls of cutlery, Amber gathering up the cards and setting them in their box. Pyrrha grabbed the condiments and set them out upon the now 'dressed' table, Jaune following up in short order with the knives and forks. Once done the whole group shot away to the available sinks to wash their hands minor tussles breaking out over the basins.

Before long they were all gathered around the table. Louis sat at one end and Mabel stood at the other ladling soup into bowls for each of them. Pyrrha and Jaune sat side by side with Madelein and Sable. Marron, Coral, Violet and Hazel all sat either side of Amber whom was still shooting daggers at her brother.

The food was dished out and everybody was too busy eating to care about anything else. To Pyrrha Mabel's cooking was some of the best she had ever tasted, good enough to rival the finest chefs that Mistral had to offer and she told the old huntress so. Mabel just blushed and tried to hide it behind a mouthful of soup.

Every bite of the meal was an explosion of flavour to the Champion. She savoured each and every one individually, from the freshness of the crisp vegetables to the powerful and rich notes from the roasted meats. Every bite was a journey in itself and one which she never wanted to end but end it did. She pushed her plate forward slightly and gave a quiet sigh of contentment being completely and utterly full.

_'One more bite and I'll explode'_ she thought with a soft chuckle. With the meal done the family all pitched in to help in the clearing up, their many hands making light work.

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><p>The evening was relatively short after their meal. Marron was shipped up and off to bed that that Father Dustmas would come along and leave her presents. The little brunette bid a goodnight to all of her family and gave Pyrrha a hug before scampering off excitedly to her room for the night.<p>

Once she was gone and they were content she wouldn't come back the remaining sisters, Jaune and their parents all made their way out and into the hall. They returned piled high with presents of all shapes and sizes which the dutifully carried and rested both under and around the tree. They were all wrapped in golden paper with matching tags.

"Every year we wait until Marron goes up to bed before we get the presents out. She still believes in Father Dustmas and none of us have it in us to tell her otherwise, so we do this so she thinks Father Dustmas has been." Jaune explained.

They stayed up until near midnight chatting quietly with the sisters, Louis and Mabel until neither of them could physically keep their eyes open any longer. After what must have been the millionth yawn between them they decided to call it quits. The family bid them a goodnight before they disappeared upstairs to their shared room.

They snuggled into bed together eager to share in each other's warmth. It wasn't long before a low rumbling snore signalled Jaune's emergence into the land of nod. Pyrrha closed her eyes hoping to be absorbed into sleeps calming embrace just as she had so many times before, but she simply couldn't. She couldn't keep her eyes open and yet neither could she drift off. She just couldn't relax, her mind was alive with a never ending tide of stray thoughts without any form of order or pattern.

She lay with her head upon his chest listening to him snore on in a daze, trapped between sleep and being fully awake watching her minds wanderings with unusual curiosity. The thoughts all seemed to swirl around and focus upon on resounding fact; tomorrow would be Dustmas.

And so she allowed her mind to wander in anticipation between all the possibilities of what it might be like. Was it going to be an organised affair or a mad dash for the tree? She just didn't know and the waiting was driving her crazy.

She checked her scroll and sighed. It was only 3:30am. The night was seeming steadily longer and longer. Her thoughts drifted to little Marron and how she had gone to bed early.

_'Just how does she do it?!' _Her mind questioned.

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><p>She pondered every small and random thought that entered her head as her over-active mind trawled its way through the small hours of the morning until morning light began to bloom through the window. Once again she cast a look at her scroll. 6:30am... still too early. Or so she thought.<p>

A door creaked open in the hallway outside the room, slow and quiet footsteps making their way down the corridor and past the door to Pyrrha and Jaune's bedroom towards the stairs. The nightly wanderer made her way down the stairs, her footsteps fading back into oblivion and leaving the Spartan to wonder if they had ever been there at all or if they had been a figment of her sleep deprived imagination.

They were proved to be a reality when little Marron came running up the stairs and burst into their room making Pyrrha jump out of her skin. The youngest Arc leapt onto her brother and bounced him trying desperately to wake him up.

"Jauney! Jauney! Wake up! He's been! He's been!" she cried, her little voice trembling with excitement. It was a truly adorable sight, so much so that Pyrrha felt her heart melt.

"M-marron... Who's been? What're you on about?" Jaune yawned groggily as he finally stirred. He sat rubbing his eyes and looking at his little sister.

"Father Dustmas Jauney! He's been! He left all the presents under the tree!"

"Really? Well then what are we waiting for?" He laughed, throwing aside the covers he grasped his little sisters hand and that of the Champion and pulled them both out into the hallway and down the stairs to the living room.

True enough as there had been the night before were hundreds of parcels, packages and envelopes piled near to the ceiling in some places. Jaune knelt down next to Marron and with a wide smile said;

"Y'know Marron, I think the others might need a little help waking up. What do you say? Think you can handle it?"He asked with a wink, his mischievous grin fixed firmly on his face. The little brunette saluted him and shot off back up the stairs.

The Knight made his way through to the kitchen followed in close order by his partner, he filled the family's large kettle and set it to boiling retrieving eleven mugs from a nearby cupboard ad precisely measuring out volumes of coffee and sugar for each one.

"Jaune won't your sisters be a little...upset at having been roused at the crack of dawn?" Pyrrha said whilst watching Jaune work away.

"Yep, they'll come thundering down those stairs like a horde of Ursai ready to kill everyone and anyone down here that resembles me. That's why it's important that I get these drinks made pronto. They're the only things that can hold them back."

There came a rumbling noise from above their heads as six angry women were dragged from their beds by Marron. True to Jaune's word they came thundering down the stairs and made a beeline for Jaune.

"Pyrrha get in that doorway, try to hold them off!" he shouted desperately pouring the fresh boiled water into each of the mugs and diving for the milk he knew was in the fridge and his only hope of salvation.

Pyrrha put herself in the doorway and planted her feet resolutely. At the other end of the hall stood the six sisters, they looked at the champion and growled. She shivered as they looked her up and down searching for any signs of weakness.

"There's more of us!" Hazel shouted

"Charge!" Came her answer as the women surged forward towards the Spartan. They clashed and in an impressive display of strength Pyrrha managed to hold her ground and repel them.

"You cannot pass!" She shouted. The sisters regrouped and charged again plowing into Pyrrha with all of their might. To her horror they began to gradually push her back.

"You shall not pass!" Pyrrha roared putting every last ounce of strength into a last ditch attempt to push the Arcs back. For a moment she succeeded before the advantage in numbers kicked in again. It seemed that all was lost when Jaune's voice rang out from behind her.

"Pyrrha! Loose the floodgates! Drinks are on!"

The redhead dived out of the way of the door allowing the six to burst through into the kitchen, Jaune backed away into the corner recoiling in fear as his sisters made their way towards him menacingly. The surrounded him ready to punish him for waking them up so early when they first caught the smell of fresh coffee.

One by one they caught the scent and peeled off to find the source. Before too long had passed they each had a mug in hand, sipping away at the scalding liquid their expressions of anger shifting to ones of more mellow qualities as the caffeine kicked in. Soon after Louis and Mabel made their way into the kitchen and wordlessly retrieved their own beverages before retreating back out of the room towards the living room, the six in tow leaving a relieved Jaune and an exhausted Pyrrha alone together.

"Jaune...What _was_ that?" She asked.

"Those Pyrrha, were my sisters before midday." he replied. "Good job holding them off by the way, they're getting faster at getting up with each subsequent year. Soon they won't need me to send Marron."

He brewed up some earl grey tea and handed the cup to his partner with a smile.

"Merry Dustmas Pyrrha."

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><p>The morning was all that Pyrrha had hoped for. They all sat around the tree cross-legged drinking their coffee (or tea in Pyrrha's case) and taking it in turns to unwrap their gifts which were distributed by Mabel. It was calm and controlled presenting a pleasant contrast from the family's usual pace and Pyrrha wouldn't have had it any other way.<p>

Before long each person had a small stack of opened gifts ranging from new Dustmas jumpers marked with the first letter of their names including one for the Spartan (who put it on in an instant and wore it proudly), to smaller items such as the ever present and always important Dustmas gift underwear.

They had unwrapped the golden gifts and had begun to attack the pile bought by the Champion. She had trouble sitting still in her excitement as she watched them all unwrap her gifts to them.

A new book for Coral, a whole new high quality weapon maintenance kit for Sable, a punk album for Madelein, Hazel was gifted the whole Sherlocked Home book series much to her delight, Violet was given a collection of the finest coffee grounds available on the market, Amber received a whale-bone hairbrush of incredible craftsmanship, Little Marron got a brand new set of high quality artist's pencils each one branded with her name as well as a new pad for her to draw her little heart out on. The brunette dived at the champion and hugged her tightly for so long that Pyrrha thought she might pass out from a lack of oxygen.

No-one was left out by the redhead, Louis got the single largest bottle of golden ale that he had ever seen and Mabel a book of recipes from the finest Mistralian chefs. The older huntress dived into it and began pouring over the pages gasping at the sheer variety of dishes it included. Finally she turned to Jaune.

"Jaune, I have you to thank for all this. You brought me into your home and have treated me as one of the family. Because of your kindness I have enjoyed my first Dustmas in my whole life. Not just you, your whole family. Thank you all for inviting me to spend the holidays with you. But for you Jaune, my Knight in scraggly armour I have this."

She reached behind her and pulled out a large object wrapped in the same thick red paper as the others. He took it from her and lifted the label.

_'To my Darling Jaune, Merry Dustmas. All my love, Pyrrha.'_

Jaune's excitement peaked, he couldn't fathom what it was that she could have possibly got for him that would require such a large box.

He looked her in the eyes as she passed it to him. It was remarkably heavy. The Knight lightly grasped at one of the many opening points and once again looked to his partner. She gave him a slight nod and a smile.

He tore through the paper with feverish excitement exposing a large box. The leader set it down and lifted the lid. With a gasp Jaune looked over the box's contents. Inside lay a brand new set of armour that put his current set to shame.

With great care he lifted out the metal plates, staring at them in reverent disbelief. They were of a similar weight to his old set however the style was entirely different. It resembled the style of Pyrrha's own armour.

Each plate was painted white just like his old set, however on the chest plate in the upper left corner was inscribed his family crest. The bright yellow standing in stark contrast to the white metal around it.

Jaune looked at his partner with tears forming in his eyes. He had something that was made just for him, not a hand-me-down or family heirloom. In his hands was a set of armour made specially for him, and it meant the very earth to him.

"P-Pyrrha I...Thank-you" He croaked past the lump in his throat and smiling brightly.

"You're welcome Jaune" She beamed back "Now let me see you wear it!"

He nodded and stood up, after some help from his partner in strapping the plates to him he stood in his full armour rotating his joints through their full motions to test the fit.

The armour was unlike anything he had ever seen. It was lighter than his older set and yet thicker and more robust. It provided a greater protection to his body, fully covering his arms and legs in light weight plating. How the smiths had managed it Jaune didn't and would most likely never know.

"It's a unique Mistralian armour. The metal they use cannot be found anywhere else. It's a form of iron they find which has formed in conjunction with a rare dust type which alters the properties of the metal making it lighter and much, much more durable than it ordinarily would have been. It's usually quite difficult to get ahold of but I pulled a few strings and had them make you a set." The Champion explained.

"Pyrrha...I love it." He grinned drawing her back into a hug. Pyrrha pouted, the armour thoroughly uncomfortable against her as her bumbling blonde drew her in. She couldn't help but smile at his childlike excitement.

Jaune carefully removed the armour and returned it to its box before he too retrieved his partner's gift. He proffered the small parcel to her. There was no label to it, it was wrapped in simple yellow paper and far too much scotch tape. The tape was twisted and tangled, no doubt from the Knights clumsy efforts to attempt and fix the problem.

In place of a label one side of the gift was marked with a single heart drawn in black marker pen. Inside the heart were the letters JP with the foot of the J running through the loop of the P. It was a simple yet effective symbol.

With difficulty she unwrapped the gift to find a small black jewellery box. She paused at the sight with a gasp, her mind running astray. She pushed one thought in particular out of her mind as childish fancy.

Opening the tiny box she found a locket made of what seemed to be rose gold. It was a simple oval style with the edges trimmed with complex knot patterns. Engraved onto the face of the smooth metal was the same heart/letter symbol from the wrapping paper.

She turned and smiled to her blonde boyfriend before opening the locket itself. On the inside were two small photographs. One was of both of them soon after they had come out of their favourite ice cream parlour in Vale (Nora's sugar cravings often leading them there.) Pyrrha was in the process of using a napkin to wipe melted mint ice cream from around Jaune's mouth. Both of them were laughing, merriment aglow within their eyes. Nora had snapped the picture in the heat of the moment, forever capturing it.

The other was a photograph from initiation day, Team Juniper all gathered together. Nora was holding the two white rook pieces with a wide grin across her face, Ren stood behind his partner with a rare smile upon his lips. Pyrrha had a hand on her leader's left shoulder, and Jaune was sat in the middle of his team a small plastic crown sat crooked on his head. It was Pyrrha's favourite photo of her team.

Her heart swelled as she looked at the two photographs. Her eyes welled up both from the memories that the locket brought up and at the amount of thought her boyfriend had put into his gift to her.

"Jaune...It's perfect!" She smiled.

The knight knelt down behind his partner and gently grasped the golden chain of the locket. He paused to allow Pyrrha to lift her hair and grant him access to her neck. Once she had he fastened the locket around her neck and sat back in his place pleased at how well his gift suited her.

She hugged him tightly, a single solitary tear rolling its way down her cheek.

"Thank you Jaune. You're the greatest boyfriend anyone could ask for. You've helped make this the best Dustmas I could have wished for."

The family sat in awkward silence around the two teenagers, unsure of what they were supposed to say or do. It was Marron who broke the silence.

"Just kiss her already!" She sighed impatiently.

Jaune turned in shock to his sister who blushed bashfully. He returned his gaze back to the Champion and with a shrug leant in and pressed their lips together. The familiar tingling sensation flowing through him sending butterflies dancing about his stomach. One thing was certain as they kissed hand-in-hand, this was the best Dustmas either of them had ever had.

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><p><strong>There you have it my dearest readers. I hope you enjoyed that. Now I have an issue I need all of your help in solving and that is the conclusion for this fic. The way things are going for me I could most likely continue writing this tale indefinitely but as we know all good things must come to an end. It is to that purpose that I would like you all to PM me suggestions for how I might bring about a good end to this tale. I may well go on to write a sequel but I don't know yet for sure. As always please do follow, favourite and review so that I can continue to provide content for you all to enjoy. Thanks for reading and I'll see you all in the next chapter.<strong>


	20. A goodbye among family

**Hey guys and a happy new year to you all! I hope you all have one of the best years ever. Without any further ado here is the conclusive piece to the Christmas arc. I hope you enjoy it more than I did writing it, to be honest it was a bloody nightmare :P**

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><p>Jaune cast a wary glance to his partner and adopted his 'ready' stance. The two were stood dressed in their full battle raiments in the backyard of Jaune's home panting hard. The snow was up to their knees chilling the metal plates of Jaune's new armour and greatly restricting movement.<p>

The limits to the speed at which they could travel had provided Pyrrha with the advantage in each and every one of their short bouts. Every time he pressed the offensive Pyrrha would keep him at bay with Miló in its spear form.

Initially their sparring session had begun out of Jaune's desire to try out his new armour but it had fast become another of their gruelling training sessions not too dissimilar from the ones back at Beacon, the only change being the addition of snow.

Jaune looked at his partner who looked at him straight back, their eye contact unwavering. The knight made his move, he half-ran half-jumped his way through the snow towards his partner. His legs burned with sheer exertion. He feigned a move to the right, Pyrrha smirked and sent the haft of Miló flying towards him at alarming speed.

This was just what Jaune had been banking on, in one smooth movement he ducked under the spear and threw himself at his partner, releasing his sword and shield. He collided with her and they fell back into the snow.

"Gotcha!" He leaned down and whispered in her ear before giving her a light kiss on the cheek. She blushed feverishly, their combined body heat beginning to melt the snow around them.

"J-Jaune! Get off! Its c-cold!" She retorted as her teeth began to chatter, the only issue with her armour was that it left a good deal of skin bare allowing for a fair amount of direct contact with the snow.

"M-my lady is cold?! Not on my watch." He laughed and clambered off of her. In a single swift movement he hefted her up and over one shoulder jogging off towards the house.

Pyrrha squeaked as he picked her up and flailed wildly trying to break free laughing the whole time. Jaune's grip was solid however and he didn't let go.

"Marron grab our weapons, we must get the fair champion inside where she may warm up!" Jaune shouted, laughing as his partner wriggled and squirmed desperately to try and break his grip. He carried her through the house, up the stairs and into their shared bedroom where at last he set her down upon their bed.

The moment she was released Pyrrha tackled him to the ground with a snarl and playfully thumped him, giggling the whole while ignoring his cries for mercy.

"That was for carrying me!" she cried out before leaning in and kissing him quite suddenly, Jaune was in shock, completely unsure of what was going on or what would happen next.

"And that... was for being my loveable goof." She smiled warmly, her cheeks steadily turning red once again. She lay her head on his chest in an attempt to hide her now utterly red face.

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><p>The two lay on the ground of their bedroom for a good while neither wanting to move and disturb the other. Jaune ran his fingers through her voluminous red hair with a slow and regular rhythm. It always amazed him that despite her monumentally busy schedule with her classes, mascot commitments and extra training with him; she always seemed to find the time to take care of her hair. It was conditioned, extremely fine and always smelt of fresh juniper.<p>

They were interrupted by a light knocking at the door, looking up they saw Marron piled high with their weapons and surrounding by the giggling older Arc sisters. Sable whipped out her scroll and snapped a few quick photographs before they all bolted off down the hallway leaving only a blushing Marron holding Jaune and Pyrrha's equipment

Jaune weakly held his arm out after them in a futile gesture for them to stop but they were long gone. He knew from past experience that those photographs would be uploaded to every social media site they had access to within the hour.

The two slowly climbed to their feet and relieved Marron of her burden, Jaune stowed his weapons away with his semi-packed luggage and ruffled the little brunette's hair. He whispered something in her ear which Pyrrha couldn't hear before they both looked at her with innocent grins.

"Hey Pyrrha...?" Jaune started.

"Do you wanna build a snowman? C'mon let's go outside~" The two sang in unison in between fits of giggles. Pyrrha stared in disbelief, she felt embarrassed _for_ them. Nevertheless she waited for them to finish their rendition.

"Remind me to keep you out of Nora and RWBY's Walt Dustney movie nights..." She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Aww, c'mon Pyrrha it'll be fun!" Jaune said as Marron pouted adorably in support, the two were working together, Jaune using his words and Marron melting the Champion's heart with pure unadulterated cuteness. Pyrrha's heart melted at the sight of the two siblings until she eventually relented.

"Ok, Jaune we will go build a snowman. But this time let me grab my some warmer clothes and my cloak." She sighed, struggling to contain a giggle.

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><p>Ten minutes later the tree were back outside thoroughly wrapped up warm, Jaune in his Parka, gloves and hat, Pyrrha in her cloak and several jumpers and little Marron in several jumpers a little Parka, gloves <em>and<em> hat.

Mabel had insisted that the youngest Arc wrapped up as warm as possible if she were going out into the snow, and despite initial resistance they had finally persuaded Marron to go along with it for the sake of their unbuilt snowman.

The little brunette resembled a disgruntled ball, the several layers she had been forced to wear had puffed her little form up considerably to a point that she couldn't move her arms properly, they were permanently out at ninety degrees to her body. Something that neither the Knight nor his Champion could help laughing at, much to the frowning Marron's distaste.

After half an hour their snowman was finished. It stood a full ten feet tall, to place the head on top all three had to stack up on each others' shoulders. Jaune was the base with Pyrrha on his shoulders (leaving him a little more than red in the face) and Marron perched on hers. Jaune's legs buckled the moment the head was placed on top leaving the two girls to fall on top of him in a tangle of limbs alive with laughter, arms and feet up in the air.

Nevertheless, they were each proud of their ten foot tall snow statue. It was crudely shaped like a knight with two entire branches poking out of the sides for arms. The head was carved out and shaped to resemble a helmet. And on its torso chipped away out of the fresh powder was two crescent arcs with a crude spear running through them, Marron's touch.

They stood and admired the statue, their hands red and raw from prolonged contact with the snow but that didn't bother them, their aura's would soon take care of that. The three looked up at the giant with reverent awe.

Quite suddenly and without warning something hit the back of Jaune's head with a soft crunch. He slowly moved a hand around to feel the area and found it to be covered in snow. He dropped to his knees, Pyrrha was soon at his side holding him in her arms.

"P-Pyrrha?" Jaune asked sounding as though he were on his last legs.

"Yes Jaune, I'm here."

"I-I feel... cold..." he continued melodramatically.

"That's just the snow Jaune..." She rolled her eyes and dropped his head back into the snow giggling even as another snowy projectile whistled past them. The champion's eyes darted up to find a grinning Sable, Amber and Coral all with armfuls of snowballs, each of them with one cocked back in preparation for throwing it. Pyrrha gulped and dived over her boyfriend just in time to avoid the barrage dragging Jaune with her.

Marron wasn't so lucky, failing to predict the incoming snowballs and had been pegged. The first one struck her left leg, the second hit her square in the chest and the third pegged her square in her face. The youngest Arc opened her mouth to say something only to have it filled with snow.

"Y-you monsters! You'll never get away with this!" Jaune called out, shaking his fist in mock anger even as Marron staggered to her feet dazed, confused and coughing up globules of spit and snow.

And so it was that the great Arc snowball fight came about. Trenches were dug and the snow piled high in defensive ramparts. As the fight wore on more and more of the Arcs joined in, until it became as close to an all out war as one can get without actual bloodshed. The two sides were roughly evenly matched, in one of the snow trenches were Mabel (she had come to investigate after the shouting broke out. She had caught a snowball to the side of the face and was out with a vengeance), Louis (he had sided with his wife) Jaune, Pyrrha and Marron. In the other were the remaining Arc siblings.

"They've got us pinned...we move even slightly and they'll get us." Jaune spoke to his teammates. "Any Ideas for escape would be greatly appreciated."

They looked at him blankly, even the older hunter and huntress seemed to be completely out of ideas. Jaune peaked up over the top of their trench, their enemies were advancing slowly across no-mans-land. It was then that his eyes landed on the ten foot snow giant and a plan began to form in his head. It was risky but it might well turn the tables.

"Marron... I have a job for you" He whispered. They all looked to him with curiosity.

"What is it Jauney?" She asked.

"You see the snowman? Do you think you could sneak up to it without them seeing you?"

"I-I'll try." she nodded determinedly.

"OK good, sneak up to it and on my signal I want you to push it over ok?" the other three teammates began to grin as they saw where his plan was going.

"Mom, Dad and Pyrrha. We're gonna make as many snowballs as possible and the moment that snowman topples we'll leap out and hit them with everything we've got. What do you say?"

They each nodded him an affirmation and busied themselves frantically gathering up the fresh fallen snow into clumps before rolling them into fully fledged snowballs. Up topside the six Arc sisters were edging their way ever closer keeping up their barrage of snow projectiles.

"Now Marron!" Jaune's voice rang out the moment he felt they had enough snowballs. With an almighty heave the tiny brunette shoved the snow giant's foundations. With a crunching sound born of compressing snow the statue toppled onto the advancing sisters. All Jaune heard of their foes were a series of gasps muffled screams as they were buried under the collapsing ten foot tall snow sculpture. Arms and legs poked randomly out of the newly formed snow drift, twitching occasionally.

Pyrrha, Jaune and his parents popped up out of their trench and launched carefully aimed snowballs at the still dazed arc sisters hitting them all over in a frighteningly accurate barrage of icy projectiles until they were little more than piles of snow with slightly blued faces. One by one the sisters raised their arms in defeat. The defenders cheered as one, sounding out their victory for all within earshot to hear. They were joined by the cheers of nosier neighbors.

Pyrrha and the Arc family made their way back inside to sit by the fire in their living-room. Jaune's sisters shooting him, little Marron and even the Pyrrhic Champion daggers as they sat shivering, wrapped in blankets and drinking from steaming mugs of hot cocoa.

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><p>After what seemed to be altogether too short a time with Jaune's family, the Dustmas holidays drew to a close and the time for them to return to Beacon and their training arrived. Neither the Champion nor her Knight wanted to leave, the cabin had become like home to Pyrrha in the short time they had stayed there.<p>

Both teenagers stood in the hallway of Jaune's family home with saddened expressions playing about their faces. Pyrrha in particular. She had come to see the Arcs as her extended family, as they had with her. She understood their 'in jokes' and quirky mannerisms just as they saw her as one of their own, including her in their teasing.

Jaune slung his rucksack onto his back with a heavy sigh, beside him Pyrrha busied herself fastening the clasp of her cloak around her neck, taking her own sweet time as though procrastinating might somehow delay the inevitable. Once she had finished she found both herself and Jaune trapped within the bounds of a crushing group hug.

"You be careful Jauney!" Amber said in perhaps her most patronizing voice.

"Yeah, we'd hate for you to be gobbled up by a big bad Ursa!" Sable chimed in

"Even if our Jauney was eaten, you can bet Pyrrha would cut it open to get him back" Pyrrha blushed, despite their obvious teasing she was a little flattered. It was a compliment she felt, although a little unorthodox.

"Take care of yourself and Pyrrha now Jaune. Say hello to your teammates from us and don't forget to write OK?" Mabel, the voice of reason interrupting her daughters.

Louis firmly shook his sons hand with a smile, no words being needed between the two men. Then came little Marron, she darted out of the sea of legs and tackle-hugged her brother taking him to the ground with surprising strength. She stood over him red in the face with her tiny hands on her hips in a pose which reminded the blonde Knight of a certain Ice queen.

"You write to us Jauney or...or I'll do something really bad to you like...um y'know!" The little brunette stammered adorably making Jaune laugh.

"You got it little one, I'll write to you as often as I can." He said and ruffled her hair.

"I'll make sure he does Marron, I promise." Pyrrha smiled to the youngest Arc earning herself a tight hug from her.

Mabel was the last to bid them a goodbye hugging them both individually.

"It was nice having you home again, and it was lovely for us all to get to know you a little better Pyrrha. Take care the both of you and we'll see you soon. You'd best get going or you'll miss your flight."

Pyrrha looked to the older huntress and saw that her green eyes had a film of tears in them, and as she looked back at the two teenagers the Champion could've sworn that she saw a glimmer of pride.

With one last wave goodbye the two stepped out into the cold with their bags and made their way up the street and towards the Airport. They could feel the nine pairs of eyes watching them the whole way up the street.

"A-are you alright Jaune?" Pyrrha asked her partner after they had walked a short way, he was walking a lot slower than usual. Slowly his blonde head turned to face her and she found that his eyes had teared up. Halfway down his cheek was a single frozen tear, a perfect sphere preserved by the biting cold.

"Yeah, I'm fine...I'm just gonna miss them y'know?" He said drying his eyes with a gloved hand and sending the tear flying to the snow covered ground below. The redhead took a step towards him and wrapped him in her arms rocking them slightly.

"It's OK Jaune, you'll be back before you know it." She said pulling away slightly to give him a smile. The Champion lightly pecked him on the lips before they set off down the street again.

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><p>The two made it onto their flight with mere moments to spare. They stood leant against one another and panting heavily after their mad dash through the airport's terminals. Dashing through the gate at the last possible instant earning a 'tsk' from the attendant.<p>

Once recovered they took their seats, Pyrrha on the window side and Jaune next to the aisle for ease of access to vomit facilities, and settled in for the three hour flight back to Beacon. Neither of the teenagers felt much like conversation, both of them missing their home away from home.

"Jaune, I just wanted to thank you for bringing me home for Dustmas... It meant a lot."

"You're welcome, it was nice to be able to spend the holidays together and between you and me, I think my family really likes you." He tapped the side of his nose and winked knowingly, chuckling to himself. Pyrrha kissed him lightly on the nose.

The two teenagers fastened their seat belts as the aircraft whirred to life and began its take-off, the brief feeling of weightlessness flooding the cabin as they began their vertical assent. Jaune's face already taking on a slightly green tinge. His unruly stomach grumbling and growling unhappily at being on an aircraft.

Jaune's hands closed up around the ends of his arm rests in a death grip, the tendons in his hands standing up in high relief. He utterly regretted eating so heartily that morning but his mom had insisted that he would need the energy for the journey. He clenched his eyes shut and focused on taking deep and slow breaths, his usual technique for controlling his stomach. A soft hand wrapped itself around his, relaxing him a little. He cracked open his eyes and saw Pyrrha smiling warmly at him. He managed a grimace in return before he closed his eyes, his stomach tensing and relaxing seemingly of its own will.

_'It's going to be a loong flight' _He thought with a sigh.

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><p><strong>There it is guys, I hope you enjoyed it. just to let you guys know the first chapter of my other fic is now up! everyone who voted for it you can now read what you had an influence in creating. To be honest I feel a lot more confident about where it is going that this one. As always favourite, follow and review. Head on over to my secondary fic 'A Rose for the Champion' for more of your Arkos dose (please review the hell out of that one and let me know what you think. Many thanks.<strong>

**I'll see you all, in the next chapter.**


	21. The Beginning of the End

**Hello one and all, a new chapter coming at you. Am literally falling asleep even as I type this, so I'm sorry if it isn't up to scratch. I hope you enjoy it.**

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><p>Jaune arched his back until it popped as he stepped off the dust-ship and onto the solid ground of Beacon's sky-dock. The flight hadn't been nearly as bad as he had expected, given that his unruly body had only ejected the contents of his stomach twice. The sky was blazing a bright orange as the afternoon wore on towards sunset. Streaks of cloud ran across the sky lit up as though they were on fire by the sun's dying light.<p>

Jaune caught a brief flash of pink off to his right leaving him with barely enough time to brace himself. Nora impacted and wrapped her arms around him in a tight bear-hug nearly taking him to ground. Her arms felt like bands of steel crushing the very life out of him. He weakly wrapped his arms around her in return knowing she wouldn't let go unless he did.

She let him go and he swayed slightly, Pyrrha giggling behind him, and drew in lungfuls of air as though it were the most precious thing on earth and might disappear at any moment. Which with Nora in a hugging mood, it may just do.

"Hey Nora, Did you and Ren have a good Dustmas?" he asked, still a little out of breath.

"You bet we did! We made the biggest snowman ever! And then the whole town got together for the biggest snowball fight ever and Jauney, my team won!" she gestured wildly with her hands as she spoke, unable to contain her excitement at seeing her teammates after the three week holidays.

Jaune clapped her on the shoulder with a smile, genuinely glad to see the hyperactive Valkyrie even after spending three weeks with his hyperactive sisters. Having greeted Nora, Jaune stepped over to the stoical martial artist and took a place at his side watching Nora obsess over Pyrrha's cape.

"So how early was it this year?" Jaune asked with a smirk. Ren sighed and looked at his leader with an expression somewhere between distress and a frown.

"Early implies she ever went to sleep. She insisted on staying up the whole night. She was simply too excited to sleep."

"Well Pyrrha was the same, it was odd. All night she was tossing and turning, I guess with it being her first Dustmas it's to be expected." He smiled.

Pyrrha and Nora stepped over to join them smiles on their face as they swapped their respective Dustmas stories. Pyrrha had seemingly lost her calm demeanour as she chattered enthusiastically about her holidays with Jaune's family.

The team made their way back to their dorm room, wild smiles on their faces at being reunited once again. Jaune phased in and out of the conversations, contenting himself to take a back-seat role and let his partner do the talking.

"But then Jaune had Marron topple the snowman onto his sisters and we all jumped out throwing loads of snowballs at them!" She waved her arms wildly to illustrate her tale. Nora listened avidly, her icy blue eyes wide as the Champion spoke. Ren walked beside Jaune chuckling at the story's outcome.

Jaune cast a brief look down at the red carpeting of the residential wing. A trail of what seemed to be pine needles littered the deep pile. Perhaps most perplexing was that the trail led down the hall and straight for their dorm room. The blonde leader knew something was up as he used his scroll to unlock their room door and a part of him felt anxious.

He pushed open the white wooden door to reveal their dorm room. Leant crudely in the corner was an overly large fir tree, the very top was bent over at ninety-degrees to the rest of the tree as it was forced against the ceiling. From the very end dangled a golden glittery plastic star. The tree was decorated in a haphazard manner with tinsel strewn this was and that throughout the branches in snaking patterns lacking in an semblance of order. The multi-coloured fairy lights blinked on and off in a pattern so fast it irritated their eyes and had the leader fearing a seizure. The base of the tree's formidable trunk was splintered badly and stabbed into their carpet and Magnhild lay next to it, seemingly Nora had 'cut' their decoration down with a few delicate swings from her hammer.

The poor tree wasn't the only thing to have been decorated, tinsel of pink, and green had been used to decorate both Nora and Ren's beds respectively. Jaune and Pyrrha's shared one had yellow and red intertwined in a spiralling pattern all around the frame, looking as though multi coloured sparks were leaping out of the woodwork and frozen in time.

From behind him stared two equally shocked faces, but Nora looked on with a mixture of pride and joy her eyes wide.

"Nora, was this you?" Jaune asked, his eyes wide.

"Yep! I made it Dustmas again!" She giggled mischievously

"I...Yeah...You did..." He replied unsure what to say. He walked into the room and set his rucksack down in the corner against the wall before taking out a couple of small parcels and setting them under the tree. Pyrrha followed suit setting her own gifts for their teammates under the tree and packing her bags away in the wardrobe.

Nora saw the wrapping paper and immediately dashed over to investigate delicately lifting the labels and investigating which ones were for her. Ren entered the room closing the door behind him and sitting on his bed calmly although his eyes flitted to the packages under the tree at regular intervals. With a final growl of frustration his curiosity overcame him, he got up and dashed over to the tree collapsing to his knees and investigating the parcels that had been placed there, picking up one and giving it a light shake when he believed neither of the Arkos pair were looking.

Satisfied that they had established which of the four gifts were addressed to who both Ren and Nora made for their respective bed spaces and retrieve small wrapped objects themselves and set them under the tree with triumphant grins.

"Before we start, does anyone fancy a drink? Tea or coffee?" Ren asked as he made for the kitchenette, having regained his composure once more.

"Yes please Ren, Tea for me." Pyrrha answered with a smile.

"Coffee please!" Jaune and Nora cried in unison before high-fiving enthusiastically earning a giggle from the Champion and a sigh from Ren.

The lotus disappeared into the kitchenette, before long the smell of fresh coffee and steeping tea wafted into the main room amplifying the team's thirst tenfold. Ren re emerged carrying a tray laden with four mugs, fresh steam drifting from them in delicate wisps. He set the tray down on the room's desk and set about handing out the drinks to his teammates.

"There you are Nora. Twelve sugars, just how you like it." He chuckled shaking his head and took his own mug, moving over to sit on his bed.

"Jauney~?" Nora dragged the name out as a small child might when they want something.

"Yes Nora~?" He smiled playing along.

"Can I?"

"Go on." Jaune laughed as she dashed over to the tree and retrieved the five parcels and came back distributing them all between the four of them excitedly with a mile wide grin. She sat back next to Ren on his bed.

"Who's first?" Ren asked.

"I think we should let Nora go first before she goes totally crazy." Pyrrha giggled watching the Valkyrie shift restlessly in her seat, champing at the bit and raring to go.

Nora gave a whoop and tore into the red wrapping paper of Pyrrha's gift, shreds of paper flying up into the air in a cloud of gift wrapping destruction. From the ruins of the once delicately wrapped gift she held up a wooden slab, a sheet of clear plastic was set into each of its faces. On the inside was carved the most complicated looking maze any of them had ever seen. A small bright ball bearing was set within the maze, the objective being to guide it into the middle. Every so often along the way a hole was drilled through into a second maze on the other side heightening the level of difficulty for the puzzle. The puzzle itself was hand carved and crafted, making it unique to any other in Remnant.

The hyperactive redhead stared at the puzzle, her tongue poking out of the side of her mouth in pure concentration. She barely moved save for her arms rotating the puzzle block. The only sound that came from her was that of the ball bearing sliding around inside the maze.

She remained that way throughout the rest of the gift opening, pausing only to open her other gift and to watch Jaune and Pyrrha open theirs from her. By the end the team sat next to a small pile of gifts each.

Pyrrha was gifted a unique shampoo from Ren and Nora's home town, flipping open the cap she was hit with the pleasant aroma of summer fruits; strawberries, blueberries and black berries all in perfect balance and harmony together. Nora smiled as she sat taking in the smells of the hair product. From Ren she received a complex looking multi tool with over thirteen implements including a socket set. She admired the smooth metal of the pocket toolkit and smiled. It was often Ren's prerogative to buy useful gifts for his teammates, and the multi tool would certainly come in handy for field repairs and maintenance on her beloved Miló.

Jaune was given a new set of hoodies (to replace his others which he had lost through training or anti-Grimm excursions with Goodwitch) although these ones were different, rather than just plain black with orange lining, these newer ones were marked up on the back with J.N.P.R, each letter was set on top of his teams respective symbols. Underneath in bold white lettering were the words; 'Team Juniper, Leader.'

He looked at it with a film of tears in his eyes knowing just how much the personalisation would have cost them.

"T-thanks you guys..." He sniffed.

Ren received a pancake maker because as Jaune explained;

"Making pancakes in the amounts that Nora eats means you do it on an industrial scale. This should make things a little bit easier"

The team finished their drinks and packed away their gifts before settling down to enjoy the rest of their day. Pyrrha set out Miló on a soft cloth and put her new multi tool to use. She stripped her beloved weapon down to its working parts and set about cleaning and oiling each one. Once done she reassembled it and went through the motions to ensure that all of the working parts functioned smoothly without sticking or jamming.

Jaune hung up his new hoodies in the wardrobe and sat watching Pyrrha's work on her weapon, he was fascinated seeing the interior build-up of the very weapon which had been responsible for causing him countless aches and pains and had given him hundreds of cuts and bruises.

Nora sat on her bed with the same perplexed expression as before as she worked to solve the ball bearing maze. She had been in that selfsame position for the past hour and a half. The Valkyrie had hardly made a sound or even moved, every ounce f her concentration directed towards the complicated maze in front of her.

Ren was reading silently on his bed, he had borrowed a book from Blake (a clean one) and was enjoying the rare opportunity he had to indulge himself in some literature. With Nora's constant hyperactivity it was a hobby he rarely got to enjoy. Despite this, his eyes flicked up from the pages and over to his parter on occasion, just to be sure she wasn't up to any mischief.

They sat in this manner for a sizeable portion of their evening, the only sounds were the clicks of Pyrrha's weapon, Ren turning the pages of his novel and the ball bearing whizzing around in Nora's maze game.

Quite suddenly however their scrolls all went off at once shattering the silence and making them all jump at the wholly unexpected sound. Jaune retrieved his from his pocket and opened up the new message.

_'Announcement: could all first-year students please report to the auditorium in ten minutes for a special briefing from Headmaster Ozpin. Full uniform will be expected. Many thanks,_

_Professor Goodwitch'_

The four teenagers looked at each other with curious expressions before changing into their school uniforms and making for the auditorium

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><p>Just as it had been in the build-up to the Vytal festival all those weeks ago, the auditorium was jam packed with students from the first year. Team RWBY were all there near the front of the crowds. Jaune led his team through and they took their places by their friends.<p>

"Hey guys! How was your Dustmas?" Ruby chirped.

"It was really nice thank-you." Pyrrha answered, wrapping an arm around Jaune and looking at him adoringly. Ruby's smile faltered for a brief moment at the sight of the happy couple. The blonde saw but dismissed it as a trick of the brain and paid it no mind.

Up on the stage Ozpin stepped out into the spotlight, his silvery hair shining slightly in the light. Steam rising up from his ever present coffee mug. He leant on his cane and cleared his throat cutting short any and all noise from the assembled first years.

"Good evening students, I hope that each and every one of you enjoyed the recent holidays. Dustmas is a chance for us all to spend time with our friends and family to foster a spirit of togetherness. Now, I don't think I need to tell you that after the upcoming New Year's celebrations at the end of the week, you will only have six months before the end of your final exams as first-years. Those among you who study hard this upcoming year will graduate into the second year without issue. However those of you whom do not taken these exams seriously and fail will find yourself back at initiation and resitting the entire year from scratch and I'm sure you don't want that. Try your best and I have every faith that you will prevail. Train both your bodies and minds in equal measure for a huntress with only one or the other isn't destined to last very long out in the field. The very best of luck to you all."

The silver haired Headmaster concluded his speech and was met with polite applause. He stepped off of the stage and out of site allowing Professor Goodwitch to take the to the mic. She had her usual sour expression etched into her features. She pushed her spectacles back up to the bridge of her nose with a small huff of annoyance. Her appearance was the very epitome of order, not a single lock of hair was out of its place.

Taking out her large holographic tablet, she tapped around on it for a few moments before looking back up to address her audience. The students waited with baited breath. Usually Goodwitch's addresses resulted in them all having to take part in extra training sessions or study sessions.

"Students, as Professor Ozpin said, you're are fast approaching the end of your first year here at Beacon, I would advise you all to begin studying now for your final assessments. You will be tested on both your combat prowess and everything that you have learned academically since the beginning of the year including the physiology of Grimm. We are training you to keep people safe so we need to be sure of your abilities, as such you shall be expected to demonstrate a marked improvement to the skills you exhibited during initiation. Best of luck, you are dismissed."

The students applauded once again as the Professor left the stage. Once she had gone nobody really left the hall, they stood milling about digesting the information that they had just been given. Most smiled confidently as they slowly filed out of the school's auditorium.

Neither team Juniper or RWBY moved, the eight teenagers stayed behind after everyone else had left. Their voices ringing out around the empty hall as they spoke. They chattered between themselves for over an hour, catching up with each other and swapping stories about their respective holidays Including one incident involving Yang, Ruby, a bottle of Rum and an interesting rendition of 'Drink up me hearties'. Jaune sat throughout the stories on the empty stage with his head in his hands, he barely cracked a smile nor spoke a word. He thought deeply about what both Ozpin and Goodwitch had said and it scared him more and more the longer he pondered their words.

Failing to graduate through to the second year, being made to repeat the first again, losing his team. It was something he wanted to avoid at all costs, but his worry wasn't combat based anymore. Pyrrha had seen to it that he could hold his own with the majority of the first-year students. No, the issue was the academical side of things, his knowledge was severely lacking and his grades were barely enough to keep afloat save for in Goodwitch's class. He couldn't concentrate on Port in his lectures and couldn't keep up with Oobleck in history class.

Yet a part of him both knew and resented the fact that it wasn't his teachers whom were to blame. It was he, who wasn't putting in the effort. If he was having trouble he had his teammates and friends that he could ask for help, he just simply didn't and he knew the reason why. His pride. Plain and simple. Just as it had stopped him from training with Pyrrha initially it stopped him admitting that he needed help. It was something he would have to address.

"What's wrong Jaune?" Ruby asked sitting down next to him tearing him from his musings.

"I-It's nothing." He replied with a slight stammer. He put his best brave face on and looked around at his friends. Every one of them seemed confident or even excited for the challenge of their finals, and he was just sat there panic swirling around in his heart like a tempest, unstoppable and seemingly insurmountable.

"Cheer up Vomit-boy!" Yang shouted giving him a somewhat solid punch to his shoulder. Sending pins and needles right down his arm.

"Argh! Yang, please don't do that." He pleaded, massaging his bruising shoulder wincing slightly.

"Awh, is Vomit-boy delicate?" Yang teased cackling maniacally.

"Leave him alone Yang." Ruby warned, shooting Jaune a brief smile which he returned.

"Does Ruby have a crush on our blonde friend? I'd be careful if ya do Rubes, you'd have to fight off the Champ herself." Yang switched-fire onto her younger sister waggling her eyebrows suggestively. The young leaders face flushed a bright red as she tried to stammer a retort to her sister's attack. Jaune laughed, relieved that someone else was the target. He felt a little bad for thinking so selfishly but he justified it given that Ruby was more used to dealing with Yang and was better equipped to deal with it. In truth he wasn't in the mood for company, he just wanted to go to bed and forget all about his exams mountain he was inevitably going to have to climb.

"It's getting late and I'm kinda tired after today's trip so I think I'm gonna hit the hay." Jaune said as he stood up giving a long yawn. He smoothed out his uniform and made for the door. His feet shuffling against the hard-wood floor as he desperately tried to sell the idea that he was tuckered out.

Once out of the hall and out of sight he broke into a run, bolting back to the dorms before anyone could decide to follow him, he wanted to be alone with his thoughts at least for a while. He burst in through the door panting hard, it had been a miracle that he had unlocked it and turned the knob before he plowed into it face first.

He staggered over and collapsed onto his and Pyrrha's shared bed, the gravity of his situation setting in. In little over six months he would have to learn, no, memorise an entire years worth of studies whilst at the _same time_ keeping up with his nightly combat sessions so as not to fall out of practice. The situation seemed hopeless.

The blonde closed his eyes, fatigue and stress flowing over his body and invading his mind. He concentrated on slowing his breathing.

_'Breathe in...2...3...4 and out...2...3...4' _He repeated over and over in his mind, his heart slowing down as the maelstrom of negativity was drawn from his mind as poison is drawn from a wound. Slowly yet surely sleep engulfed him and he drifted through the world of his dreams.

He didn't stir, he slept on undisturbed by his teammates entering the room nor even by his partner climbing into bed next to him and curling up to him, her warmth being added to his own. In the depths of his mind he knew that when he woke up the next day, it would be time to study.

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><p><strong>There you have it. Jaune is in trouble now. Ohh drama! Only a couple more story Arcs before I finally bring this piece to a close...and start work on its sequel piece. As always please do favourite and follow if you enjoyed this. Please leave a review and let me know just what you think of my work. <strong>

**As a final point please check out my second fic 'A Rose for the Champion' link is on my profile. Thank you all.**

**I'll see you all in the next chapter.**


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